Taiwan scrambled jets and navy ships on Wednesday as a group of Chinese warships led by China's sole aircraft carrier sailed north through the Taiwan Strait, the latest sign of heightened tensions between Beijing and the self-ruled Taiwan. The Liaoning, leading a Chinese fleet, entered Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) from the southwest at 7:00 a.m. Wednesday and continued to sail north along the Taiwan Strait, apparently on their way back to China from the South China Sea after training exercises, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a statement. Japanese and Taiwanese surveillance aircraft and ships closely monitored the Liaoning along its journey, seen by some as a sign of how China plans to use the carrier to demonstrate its willingness to back up its territorial claims with military muscle. Ma said he had no information on the Liaoning’s passage through the Taiwan Strait and referred questions on the matter to the Defense Ministry, which did not immediately respond. The carrier was returning from high-profile exercises in the disputed South China Sea, where it was testing weapons and maneuvers, to its home port in the northern city of Qingdao. REUTERS/Stringer/File photo

Beijing suspects Tsai wants to push for the island’s formal independence, a red line for the mainland, which has never renounced the use of force to bring what it deems a renegade province under its control.
Taiwan scrambles navy ships and jets as Chinese warships, led by the aircraft carrier Liaoning, sail through the Taiwan Strait following exercises in the South China Sea.