China flies record 56 warplanes toward self-ruled Taiwan

By HUIZHONG WU
Associated Press

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China has sent 56 fighter planes toward Taiwan in the largest show of force on record, continuing the three days of sustained military harassment against the self-ruled island. The first sortie included 34 fighter jets and 12 bombers, and later four more fighters flew towards the southwestern part of Taiwan’s air defense identification zone — a buffer outside a country’s airspace. The Taiwanese air force scrambled its fighter planes and monitored the movement of the Chinese warplanes. China claims democratically ruled Taiwan as its own territory, to be brought under its control by force if necessary. It refuses to recognize the island’s government and has increasingly sought to isolate it. Taiwan’s foreign minister says he’s concerned china will launch a war at some point.