China conducts combat readiness patrol as U.S. lawmakers visit Taiwan

China conducts combat readiness patrol as U.S. lawmakers visit Taiwan
# 09 November 2021 23:20 (UTC +04:00)

China's military said on Tuesday it conducted a combat readiness patrol in the direction of the Taiwan Strait, after its defence ministry condemned a visit to Taiwan by a U.S. congressional delegation it said had arrived on a military aircraft, APA reports quoting Reuters.

The patrol was aimed at the "seriously wrong" words and actions of "relevant countries" on the Taiwan issue and the activities of pro-independence forces in Taiwan, a Chinese military spokesperson said in a statement.

Several Taiwan media outlets reported on Tuesday that unspecified members from both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate had arrived in Taipei on a U.S. military plane.

Taiwan's presidential office declined to comment. The American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto U.S. embassy in the absence of formal diplomatic ties, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China's defence ministry said in a statement that members of the U.S. Congress had arrived in Taiwan by military plane.

"We firmly oppose and strongly condemn this," it said.

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THE OPERATION IS BEING PERFORMED