China launches military drill in South China Sea

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Amid Russia’s ongoing intervention in Ukraine, China has decided to hold military exercises in the South China Sea starting Sunday.

The three-day drill will end on Tuesday, according to state-run daily Global Times.

China’s Maritime Safety Administration said the exercises will be held in a radius of six nautical miles in the South China Sea.

The military drill was launched a day after a US warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait, triggering intense air activity as eight Chinese jets entered what self-ruled Taiwan calls its air defense identification zone (ADIZ).

​​​​​​​Beijing slammed the US destroyer’s passage as a “hypocritical, futile and provocative action,” saying it deployed its “forces to track and monitor” the warship’s movements.

Two more Chinese jets crossed into Taiwan’s ADIZ on Sunday, the Taiwanese Defense Ministry said.

As the world focuses on Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine, observers are also closely watching China’s moves regarding Taiwan, which it claims as a “breakaway province.”

Taipei, however, has insisted on its independence since 1949 and maintains diplomatic relations with at least 15 countries.​​​​​​​