By Ben Blanchard
TAIPEI, June 6 (Reuters) – Taiwan accused China on Friday of raising tensions in the region with a “provocative” military patrol involving warplanes and warships near the island, an unusual public rebuke in what are typically routine accounts of Chinese military activity.
Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, has complained of repeated Chinese military drills and patrols nearby. Since President Lai Ching-te took office last year China has held three major rounds of war games.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said that starting mid-afternoon Friday, it had detected 21 Chinese military aircraft, including J-16 fighters, operating with warships to carry out “so-called joint combat readiness patrols” and “harass the airspace and seas around us.”
“The Ministry of National Defence stresses that these acts are highly provocative, fail to pay proper attention to…
