TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Amid concern about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the Ministry of National Defense reported Saturday (March 19) that a Shenyang J-11 and a Shenyang J-16 fighter jet as well as two Xi’an H-6 bombers had entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ).
The reports followed talks between United States President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平) about the situation in Ukraine. On Friday (March 18), China’s Shandong aircraft carrier also sailed through the Taiwan Strait, though Beijing described the journey as a routine exercise.
As on most previous occasions, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) planes appeared in the southwest sector of Taiwan’s ADIZ and were soon warned to leave the area, CNA reported. The Ministry of National Defense also said it deployed air defense missile systems to monitor the activities of the aircraft.
The almost daily intrusions have been described as part of a tactic to exhaust Taiwan’s Air Force and air defense organization, and in some cases also to gain information about missile tests by Taiwan.