Taiwan, 43 jets and 8 Chinese warships around the island

(ANSA) – BEIJING, SEPTEMBER 26 – Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it detected 43 Chinese aircraft and eight warships operating around the island in the 24 hours to 6 am local time (midnight in Italy). Wednesday saw a surge in the country’s military activity on the same day that Beijing tested an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) over the Pacific for the first time in nearly 45 years. A total of 34 tracked aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, the ministry added, assuring that Taipei’s armed forces “monitored the situation and responded accordingly.” Yesterday, a Japanese warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait for the first time, asserting its freedom of navigation in those waters, according to local media. There was no immediate confirmation from the Defense Ministry of the passage, which, according to reports, occurred yesterday, following similar feats by the U.S. and European navies. Beijing considers Taiwan a rogue province and claims jurisdiction over the body of water that separates the island from mainland China. But the United States and several other countries argue such voyages are legitimate, citing freedom of navigation. Washington and its allies have recently increased their crossings of the 180-kilometer (112-mile) Taiwan Strait to assert the international nature of the waterway, angering Beijing. The Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, citing unnamed government sources, said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had ordered the crossing to counter China’s assertiveness. Earlier this month, a Chinese aircraft carrier sailed between two Japanese islands near Taiwan for the first time, with Tokyo criticizing the incident as “totally unacceptable,” while China said it was complying with international law. (ANSA).