The US is threatening peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, a Chinese army spokesman said
A US warplane’s recent flight through the Taiwan Strait is a threat to the stability of the region, a Chinese army spokesman stated, as cited by China Daily on Monday.
The P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine patrol and reconnaissance aircraft flew through the strait separating mainland China and the self-governed island of Taiwan on Monday. A Chinese Su-27 took off and monitored the American spy plane along its path. Senior Colonel Shi Yi, a spokesman for the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) Eastern Theater Command, said this maneuver “deliberately damaged the regional situation and jeopardized peace and stability” in the region. He added that the Chinese military was “on high alert to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
The US forces in the region acknowledged the maneuver. “The United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate anywhere international law allows including within the Taiwan Strait,” the 7th Fleet Command said in a statement.
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense confirmed that they knew of the P-8A’s flight in a short official statement on the same day, calling the situation “normal.”
Back in June 2022, the US sent a P-8A into the Taiwan strait soon after Beijing deployed 29 aircraft into Taiwan’s self-declared air defense identification zone (ADIZ). Back then, Shi similarly accused the US and Taiwan of “hyping” the maneuver up and testing China’s determination by sending American warships through the straits. Taiwanese foreign ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou argued that the waterway was part of international waters.
In response to the US spy plane flythrough, Beijing held their own military exercises in August.
China-US relations are experiencing increased levels of tension due to the ‘spy balloon’ scandal. A Chinese high-altitude balloon crossed over the continental US in late January and early February. Beijing assured it was a weather aircraft veering off course, while the Pentagon claimed it was part of a vast surveillance network of spy airships and shot it down. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled his planned trip to China, while Beijing accused Washington of “hysteria” and an “overreaction.”
US President Donald Trump confirmed on Wednesday the upcoming start of ground strikes against drug cartel targets in Latin America.
He made the remarks during Christmas greetings to the military.
Trump said the United States was "now going after the land" in its fight against drug cartel targets, noting that drug trafficking by sea was down 96 percent.
The U.S. president also extended special congratulations to the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, currently deployed in the Caribbean.
BEIJING (Sputnik) - China has begun operating the world's first intelligent ultra-large oil tanker powered by methanol, the China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Monday.
The tanker, designed to transport crude oil, was successfully put into operation in the city of Dalian in China's northeastern coastal province of Liaoning, the report said. State-owned company Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co Ltd independently designed and built the vessel, it added.
The tanker is approximately 333 meters (1,092 feet) long and can carry around 2.1 million barrels of crude oil, the CCTV reported. Designed to produce low emissions and having intelligent control capabilities, the tanker will serve the route to the Middle East, among others, according to the report.
The vessel is powered by a dual-fuel methanol engine, which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 92% compared to conventional fuel, the CCTV reported. It is equipped with an intelligent ship platform, an intelligent liquid cargo ...
A car bomb has killed a senior General Staff member, officials have confirmed
Source: The Investigative Committee
A Russian general has been killed in a car bomb blast in Moscow, the Investigative Committee has reported.
Officials identified the victim as Lt. Gen. Fanil Sarvarov, head of operational training at the General Staff. According to the statement, an explosive device had been planted beneath the vehicle he was traveling in, and detonated on Monday morning in the southern part of the Russian capital.
The blast also damaged several other vehicles and seriously injured Sarvarov’s driver, media reports stated.
Russian officials said one line of investigation is an assassination carried out by Ukrainian intelligence services, noting that Kiev has previously used explosive devices in targeted killings of officials and public figures.
Last December, a bomb hidden in an e-scooter killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, commander of Russia’s Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense ...
