Taiwan finds a Chinese balloon on an island in the north

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan’s Defense Ministry says a Chinese weather balloon has landed on one of its outlying islands, while the United States says Beijing has deployed weather balloons around the world to spy on Washington and its allies. .

The balloon was fitted with equipment registered with a state-owned electronics company in the northern city of Taiyuan, the ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

The islet on which it appeared, Tungyin, is part of the Matsu archipelago, located off the Chinese province of Fujian.

Taiwan has maintained control of these islands since the two sides separated in 1949 in the midst of civil war and they are seen as a first line of defense should China decide to follow through on its threat to subject the island to its control, by force if necessary.

Calls and messages to the company identified in the report, Taiyuan Wireless (Radio) First Factory Ltd., went unanswered. The equipment information was written in simplified Chinese characters used in mainland China, rather than traditional Taiwanese characters, the ministry added.

China usually sends military aircraft and warships to Taiwan’s identification zone and across the line dividing the Taiwan Strait. This led Taipei to increase its military purchases from the United States, increase domestic production of aircraft, submarines, and warships, and extend conscription to all men.

Washington is Taiwan’s closest military and diplomatic ally, although they have had no official ties since 1979. Beijing strongly protests any contact between the island and the United States, but its aggressive diplomacy has helped build bipartisan support for Taiwan. .

Also on Thursday, President Joe Biden said the United States was developing “stricter rules” to track, monitor and, if necessary, shoot down unknown aerial objects three weeks after the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon that flew over a large part of the country. .