22 Chinese aircraft detected around Taiwan island

“Since 9:30 a.m. (1:30 p.m. Japan time), we have detected activity of 22 PLA aircraft,” the agency said in a statement released at 12:10 p.m. Saturday.

“Twelve aircraft crossed the median line and entered the air defense identification zone of northern and central Taiwan,” the report said, adding that fighter jets and drones joined Chinese naval ships on “joint combat patrols.”

The median line bisects the Taiwan Strait, a 180-kilometer (110-mile) narrow waterway that separates Taiwan from mainland China.

Although Beijing does not recognize the border, it claims democratic Taiwan as part of its territory and has never renounced the use of force to control the island.

Tensions between China and Taipei have escalated under Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen as she and the Taiwanese government reject China's claims to the island.

His deputy, Vice President Lai, won the presidential election in January despite warnings from the Chinese government that it would bring “war and decline” to Taiwan.

Saturday's show of force came as the United States and the Philippines are conducting joint military exercises involving areas near potential flashpoints in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.

The joint exercise includes a simulation of retaking enemy-occupied islands in the area facing Taiwan.

The Chinese government claims nearly all of the South China Sea, despite international rulings that the claim has no legal basis, and recent clashes between Chinese and Philippine vessels have been linked to a broader raising concerns of conflict.

China's Foreign Ministry accused the United States of “inciting military confrontation.”

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