Taiwan

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A delegation of U.S. lawmakers met with the head of Taiwan’s legislature on Monday as part of a five-day visit to the self-ruled island that comes as U.S.-China relations remain tense after weeks of trading accusations over a spy balloon.

The delegation that arrived Sunday includes Reps. Ro Khanna of California, Tony Gonzales of Texas, Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts and Jonathan Jackson of Illinois.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A visit by a Chinese official at the invitation of the Taiwanese capital’s newly elected China-friendly mayor has drawn protests on the self-ruled island.

The head of Shanghai city’s Taiwan Affairs Office, Li Xiaodong, arrived Saturday morning for a three-day visit that marks a rare point of contact between the sides.

China deems Taiwan a part of its territory to be conquered by force if necessary and has been courting pro-Chinese media and politicians on the island to further its unification agenda.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan’s Defense Ministry says a Chinese weather balloon landed on one of its outlying islands, amid U.S. accusations that such craft have been dispatched worldwide to spy on Washington and its allies.

The ministry’s statement on Thursday said the balloon carried equipment registered to a state-owned electronics company in the northern city of Taiyuan.

The islet where it was found, Tungyin, is part of the Matsu island ground lying just off the coast of China’s Fujian province.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The outgoing president of Paraguay, whose country is one of Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies, spoke of his admiration for the island democracy while on a state visit to Taipei on Thursday.

Mario Abdo Benitez was welcomed with an honor guard as he walked alongside Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen on a red carpet in front of the Presidential House. Abdo arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday on a five-day visit.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A group of Swiss lawmakers met with Taiwan’s president and said Monday their government wants to deepen political relations, adding to shows of support by foreign politicians for the self-ruled island democracy in the face of Chinese intimidation.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan scrambled fighter jets, put its navy on alert and activated missile systems in response to nearby operations by 34 Chinese military aircraft and nine warships that are part Beijing’s strategy to unsettle and intimidate the self-governing island democracy.

The large-scale Chinese deployment came as Beijing increases preparations for a potential blockade or military action against Taiwan that have stirred increasing concern among military leaders, diplomats and elected officials in the U.S., Taiwan’s key ally.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The Chinese military held large-scale joint combat strike drills starting Sunday, sending war planes and navy vessels toward Taiwan, both the Chinese and Taiwanese defense ministries said.

The exercises coincided with the visit of a group of German lawmakers who landed in Taiwan on Monday morning. Leading the delegation is the Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, who leads the German Parliament’s Defense Committee.

TAIPEI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - Seventy-one Chinese air force aircraft including fighter jets and drones entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone in the past 24 hours, the island's government said on Monday, the largest reported incursion to date.

Of the aircraft, 43 also crossed the Taiwan Strait's median line, an unofficial buffer between the two sides that lies within the defence zone, Taiwan's Defence Ministry said in a report, as Beijing continues military activities close to the Chinese-claimed island.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China’s military sent 71 planes and seven ships toward Taiwan in a 24-hour display of force directed at the island, Taiwan’s defense ministry said Monday, after China expressed anger at Taiwan-related provisions i n a U.S. annual defense spending bill passed on Saturday.

China’s military harassment of self-ruled Taiwan, which it claims is its own territory, has intensified in recent years, and the Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army has sent planes or ships toward the island on a near-daily basis.

TAIPEI, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Taiwan scrambled combat jets to warn away 39 Chinese aircraft that entered its southeastern air defence zone, the island's defence ministry said on Thursday.

Taiwan has complained of repeated missions by the Chinese air force over the last two years, often in southern areas of its air defence identification zone, or ADIZ.