China Stages Combat Patrols After Warning Taiwan on US Meeting

Nine Chinese aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait’s median line on Friday carrying out combat readiness patrols, Taiwan’s defense ministry said, days after Beijing threatened retaliation if President Tsai Ing-wen meets U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

China, which claims democratically ruled Taiwan as its own territory despite the strong objections of the island’s government, has been angered by what it sees as stepped up U.S. support for Taiwan.