Thu Sep 19 07:27:41 UTC 2024: ## China Scrambles Jets in Response to US Flight Through Taiwan Strait

**TAIPEI, TAIWAN** – The US Navy conducted a freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) on Tuesday, flying a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft through the Taiwan Strait. The US Navy stated the flight was conducted in international airspace in accordance with international law, demonstrating its commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

China responded by scrambling warplanes to shadow and monitor the US aircraft, citing the need to safeguard its sovereignty. The PLA Eastern Theater Command, responsible for the East China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, described the US flight as a provocative act and declared its troops remain on high alert.

This marks the second such overflight by a US Navy P-8A Poseidon since April and the sixth US FONOP this year. Taiwan’s defense ministry confirmed the aircraft flew from south to north through the strait and described the situation as normal.

The incident comes just days after two German warships, the frigate Baden-Württemberg and the replenishment ship Frankfurt am Main, transited the Taiwan Strait. Germany described the passage as completely normal and a safe route, while China accused Germany of provoking and endangering its sovereignty under the guise of freedom of navigation.

China continues to assert its sovereignty over Taiwan, considering it a Chinese province and the Taiwan Strait its territorial waters. The PLA routinely sends ships and aircraft to the waters around Taiwan.

Furthermore, a Chinese navy flotilla led by the aircraft carrier Liaoning sailed through waters northeast of Taiwan and continued toward the southeast of Japan’s Yonaguni Island on Wednesday. This marks the first time this year that the Liaoning, China’s first of three aircraft carriers, has entered the Western Pacific.

These events highlight the ongoing tensions between China and the US and its allies over the future of the Taiwan Strait and the broader Indo-Pacific region. The frequency of US FONOPs and the increasing assertiveness of the PLA are contributing to a heightened sense of uncertainty and potential for conflict.

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