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China sent 71 warplanes and seven ships toward Taiwan in a display of force over 24 hours after Beijing condemned the billions in security assistance Congress included for the self-governing island in the $858 billion military defense spending bill approved this month.
In that timeframe, 47 of the Chinese planes crossed the Taiwan Strait’s median line, an unofficial boundary between the two countries, and entered Taipei’s air defense zone, Taiwan’s military said Monday.
China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory, has ramped up its military posture against the island, sending warplanes into its air space and conducting military exercises in the waters nearby over the past couple of years.
