China deployed nearly 70 planes and ships close to Taiwan?

Taiwan's Defense Agency announced this morning, December 10, that it had recorded increased Chinese military activities around the island.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry announced this morning that in the previous 24 hours, they had detected 47 Chinese military aircraft operating around the island, as well as 12 naval vessels and 9 official vessels, according to Reuters.

A Taiwanese Mirage 2000 fighter jet prepares to land at an air base in Hsinchu City, Taiwan, on December 10.

Of the 47 military aircraft, 26 flew in areas north of Taiwan off China's Zhejiang province, six flew in the Taiwan Strait and 15 were in southwestern Taiwan, according to a map provided by Taiwan's Defense Ministry in its morning announcement of Chinese activities.

Reuters quoted a senior Taiwanese security source as saying that Chinese aircraft simulated attacks on foreign naval vessels and practiced chasing away military and civilian aircraft as part of a "blockade exercise".

Taiwan's Defense Forces raised their alert level on December 9 after confirming that China had established seven "temporarily designated airspace zones" and deployed multiple naval and coast guard vessels, according to Reuters. As of today, the Chinese military has not commented and has not confirmed that it is conducting any exercises.

China is expected to stage the exercises to show its anger at Taiwanese leader Lai Ching-te’s Pacific tour, which ended on December 6. Lai stopped in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam.

China has declared the Taiwan issue to be the "core of its core interests" and a red line that the US should not cross, according to Reuters. On December 9, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said the country would resolutely defend its "sovereignty" and asserted that Taiwan was an "inviolable" part of Chinese territory, according to AFP.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/trung-quoc-trien-khai-gan-70-may-bay-tau-ap-sat-dai-loan-185241210095320172.htm