On Friday, Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense issued a statement confirming that 10 planes belonging to China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), including six J-16 and two J-11 fighters, alongside one anti-submarine and one reconnaissance aircraft, had entered the island’s southwest air-defense zone.
10 PLA aircraft (Y-8 ASW, Y-8 RECCE, J-11*2 and J-16*6) entered #Taiwan’s southwest ADIZ on September 17, 2021. Please check our official website for more information: https://t.co/YEOidhGWXx pic.twitter.com/4ULG8nolnU
— 國防部 Ministry of National Defense, R.O.C. 🇹🇼 (@MoNDefense) September 17, 2021
Taiwanese troops were dispatched and missile systems were poised to monitor the jets’ activity, the ministry’s statement read.
The latest flyby comes just a day after Taipei proposed spending an extra $8.69 billion over the next five years to boost its military against potential “severe threats from the enemy,” referring to Beijing. The additional multi-billion-dollar package will also be used for new missiles.
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said that Beijing’s military capability had been significantly ramped up, and stressed that it is a matter of urgency for the island “to obtain mature and rapid mass production weapons and equipment in a short period of time.”
