US warns Beijing as Chinese vessels encircle Taiwan

WASHINGTON: The United States has warned China against escalating tensions as Taiwan detected multiple Chinese naval vessels, official ships and balloons operating around the island amid Beijing's large-scale live-fire military drills. China's recent military exercises have heightened strains between Taipei and Beijing, prompting Washington, DC to call on China to reduce its military pressure campaign against Taiwan, Focus Taiwan reported.

"China's military actions and statements toward Taiwan and other regional actors unnecessarily raise tensions," US State Department principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said on Thursday, according to Focus Taiwan.

"We call on Beijing to show restraint, halt its military intimidation of Taiwan, and pursue meaningful dialogue instead." Pigott added that the US remains committed to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and opposes any unilateral attempt to alter the status quo through force or coercion. 

Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) said it detected six People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels, one official ship and two Chinese balloons operating around Taiwan’s territorial waters as of 6 am on Friday.

The MND said Taiwan’s armed forces monitored the situation and responded accordingly.

Earlier on Thursday, Taiwan detected three sorties of Chinese military aircraft, 17 PLAN vessels and eight official ships operating around its waters.

Of the three aircraft sorties, one crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s southwestern Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), the MND said in a post on X.