17 Chinese jets, 5 ships cross Taiwan strait as U.S officials visit Taipei

17 Chinese military aircraft and 5 ships crossed Taiwan strait amid U.S congressional delegation’s visit to the island. Taiwan’s Defence Ministry said that it tracked the Chinese aircrafts on Monday and sent combat air patrol aircrafts and ships, in response. A fresh delegation of U.S lawmakers is visiting Taiwan, just days after U.S House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit saw unprecedented military drills by China. Beijing sees Taiwan as as part of its territory and sees U.S delegation’s visit to the island as an ‘ambush that threatens China’s sovereignty’. Taiwan, on the other hand, is a self-governed island and sees Chinese war games as threat to regional security.