The images of a supposed Chinese military plane hidden under a commercial plane bound for Taiwan have set off all the alarms on the island due to the fear that it is an assault test by the Chinese Armed Forces.
The Taiwanese Ministry of Defense has not wanted to comment on the news that appeared in digital media about the presence of a Chinese Y-9 military spy plane which was flying on September 24 behind a flight of Cathay Pacific between Hong Kong and Shanghai.
As it approached the Taiwanese surveillance zone, the Y-9 positioned itself just below the airliner, allowing it to disappear from radar for about ten minutes.
The plane was registered on the flight tracking portals FlightAware vs Flightradar 24 the same day that Taipei warned of an increase in Chinese military activity in the coastal region near Taiwan, in Dacheng Bay, Fujian province, the newspaper reports ‘South China Morning Post’.
The Government has stressed that “Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems are closely monitoring the situation.”. Chinese military exercises include fighter jets, drones, bombers and warships, according to the ministry.
A retired lieutenant general of the Taiwanese Air Force, Chang Yen Ting, has described the maneuver as a “Trojan horse” that allows a combat aircraft to be camouflaged. “If three or five communist fighter planes fly in vertical formation under the cover of civilian aircraft, they could surprise us with a surprise attack that would allow them to reach Taipei and other large cities in just 5 or 10 minutes,” he warned.
“That would tremendously reduce our time to respond to a surprise ‘Trojan horse’ attack by communist fighter jets using flight path M503 under cover of civilian aircraft.”has added.
This Chinese trade route was approved in 2018 by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) despite repeated protests from Taiwan over its proximity to the island’s flight information region.
Taiwan has had an independent government since 1949, but China considers the territory under its sovereignty. The fundamental policy of the Chinese Government towards Taiwan has until now been that of peaceful reunification under the “one country, two systems” principle.
The Taiwanese authorities have denounced this Saturday the presence of 21 aircraft and five ships of the Chinese Armed Forces in the vicinity of the island during the last 24 hours.
In addition, four fighters have crossed its airspace in the southwest of the island, and the Taiwanese Armed Forces They have monitored the situation and responded with the deployment of aircraft, ships and land missile systems, as published on their account on the social network X, formerly known as Twitter.
The escalation of tensions in the region began with the trip to the island of the then president of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosiin August of last year, and the situation has worsened after the visit of the president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing Wen, to the North American country, where she met with several American congressmen despite warnings from Beijing.
Taiwan has had an independent Government since 1949, but China considers the territory under its sovereignty and its fundamental policy regarding the island is that of peaceful reunification under the “one country, two systems” principle, although it does not rule out the use of force against “independence attempts.”
(With information from Europa Press)
Source-www.infobae.com