Dozens of Chinese warplanes crossed into Taiwan’s air protection zone on Saturday as Beijing kicked off army drills round Taiwan in response to President Tsai Ing-wen’s go to with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. 

Taiwan’s National Defense Ministry reported that 45 plane crossed the northern, central and southern median line within the Taiwan Strait and entered the island’s air protection identification zone.

A complete of 71 Chinese People’s Liberation Army plane and 9 vessels concerned within the workouts have been detected by Taiwanese protection forces as of Saturday afternoon.

Taiwanese protection forces “have monitored the situation and tasked our assets to respond to these provocative activities,” the National Defense Ministry mentioned in an announcement on Twitter.

The Taiwanese army mentioned it has activated its missile protection system and begun air and sea patrols to trace Chinese plane.

China introduced that it could perform a three-day “combat readiness patrols” as a warning to these advocating for Taiwanese independence after President Tsai met with Mr. McCarthy, California Republican, capping a multi-day go to to the U.S.

SEE ALSO: McCarthy’s assembly with Taiwan chief follows fears Pelosi’s go to made the island much less safe

Beijing claims the self-ruled island democracy as a part of Chinese territory.

“This is a serious warning against the collusion and provocation between the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces and external forces,” a PLA assertion learn.

The Chinese Communist Party-owned newspaper China Daily reported on Saturday that the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command “had sent its air and naval forces to surround the Taiwan Island to establish deterrence from all directions.”

“In the first day of the ‘Joint Sword’ exercises, the command has mobilized destroyers, frigates, missile boats, fighter jets, bombers, electronic warfare planes, refueling aircraft as well as multiple-launch rocket systems and conventional ballistic missile units to move them to designated zones for combat deployment,” the state-backed outlet reported.

The Chinese navy additionally deliberate to carry “live fire training” in Luoyuan Bay in China’s Fujian province reverse Taiwan. Ships have been banned from the world to permit for the reside fireplace workouts however to happen over the following two weeks.

While China’s escalation in response to Ms. Tsai’s assembly with Mr. McCarthy was not unexpected by officers within the U.S., the Biden administration has pushed to calm tensions and warned towards additional escalation by Beijing.

“The Peoples Republic of China should not use this transit as a pretext to step up any activity around the Taiwan strait,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby mentioned forward of Ms. Tasai’s arrival within the U.S.

Mr. McCarthy remained defiant on Saturday, vowing to not be swayed by China’s provocations.

“I am the Speaker of the House,” Mr. McCarthy wrote on Twitter. “There is no place that China is going to tell me where I can for or who I can speak to.”

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