China deploys 42 fighter jets, warships near Taiwan

Sept. 12 (UPI) -- Twenty-two Chinese fighter jets and 20 warships were detected near Taiwan in the past 24 hours, it's military said Tuesday, amid deepening tensions with Beijing, which has deployed increasing numbers of sorties near the self-governing island.

Taiwan's ministry of national defense announced the incursions in a statement, stating that of the 22 Chinese aircraft, 13 had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered the island's southwest Air Defense Identification Zone.

Taiwan said it responded with deploying its own aircraft, warships and land-based missile systems.

The incursions came a day after Taiwan said 39 Chinese aircraft and vessels had been detected around the island.

China views Taiwan as a rogue province it has vowed to bring back under its authority by force if necessary, and it conducts so-called gray zone warfare where it deploys war vessels and jets into the island's ADIZ in an effort to sap Taipei's resources and the moral of its military.

Beijing has deployed 77 jets and 62 ships to near Taiwan so far this month, according to Taiwan News, which reported that China has been increasing its use of gray zone tactics since September 2020.

China's moves Tuesday followed a weekend in which the U.S. and Canadian militaries sent vessels through the Strait of Taiwan that separates the self-governing island from the Chinese mainland.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ottawa conducted the routine freedom of navigation transit Saturday in what the U.S. 7th Fleet described in a statement as a demonstration of "the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific."