the pla liaoning aircraft carrier cruised taiwan again after a year. scholars: without the pla's deterrence, taiwan will go down a path of no return
2024-09-20
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china taiwan network, september 19th. yesterday, a piece of news sparked heated discussions on both sides of the taiwan strait: on the day of the september 18th anniversary, the people's liberation army liaoning aircraft carrier formation quietly appeared in the northeastern waters of taiwan and sailed towards japan's yonaguni island. the taiwan defense department claimed that it sent military aircraft and warships to "monitor the entire process", and the japanese ministry of defense also conducted a "frame-by-frame analysis" of the liaoning's track and emphasized that "this is the first time that a chinese aircraft carrier has entered japan's contiguous zone."
perhaps the "moldy munitions" a few days ago made the people on the island hold their breath. seeing the taiwan military jumping up and down again, many taiwanese netizens left mocking messages, "besides these words, can you do anything else?" "full monitoring? i think they watched the whole process." "what can you monitor with moldy and expired equipment? don't come out and embarrass yourself."
as china's first aircraft carrier, the people's liberation army's "liaoning" aircraft carrier has been in service for 11 years since it was officially commissioned into the people's navy in 2012. it has participated in many important military and demonstration activities, greatly enhancing china's status and influence on the international stage. in december 2022, after completing the last long-distance training of the year, the liaoning officially entered the upgrade and transformation stage. this is also the first time in a year that the liaoning has entered the western pacific for a cruise from the taiwan waters.
as for why the liaoning chose to show up at this time, the answer is self-evident. on the day of the mid-autumn festival, a us p-8a anti-submarine patrol aircraft flew through the taiwan strait and publicly hyped it up, attempting to support the "taiwan independence" forces on the island and "demonstrate" to china in this way. in the face of the us provocation, the mainland sent the liaoning aircraft carrier formation to cruise in the waters near taiwan island in less than 24 hours. its purpose was to demonstrate the pla's control over the situation in the taiwan strait, respond to the behavior of us military aircraft, and also test the strategic capabilities of the upgraded aircraft carrier.
it is worth mentioning that not long ago, the mainland media has revealed that the liaoning aircraft carrier has conducted take-off and landing training for a new type of carrier-based aircraft. it is widely speculated that this new type of carrier-based aircraft is the pla j-35. as the fifth-generation stealth fighter independently developed by the mainland, the j-35 is a carrier-based fighter designed for aircraft carriers. it is suitable for taking off and landing on aircraft carriers and is mainly used in naval aviation units. some analysts pointed out that if the liaoning aircraft carrier can carry the j-35, it will have a great deterrent effect on both the "taiwan independence" forces on the island and the external interference forces.
recently, cctv broadcast a large-scale military documentary, "quenching", with various real-life scenes that made many military fans very excited. among them, an interview with a pla j-20 pilot directly broke the defense of the dpp authorities. the content mentioned that the pla j-20 has participated in combat readiness cruise missions around taiwan many times, and each flight is close to taiwan island. in the words of the pilot, "i can never forget the scene of seeing the treasure island when driving the j-20."
you know, the taiwan defense department had previously boasted that the upgraded "pave paws" long-range early warning radar introduced by the taiwan military at a high price would become a "nightmare" for the pla's stealth fighters. however, in connection with this report, the j-20's cruise around taiwan has become an open fact, and pla pilots can already see the outline of the treasure island, but the taiwan military has never confirmed that it has "found traces of the j-20." in this light, it is a pipe dream for the taiwan military to detect the j-35, which has stronger stealth capabilities, higher agility, and supersonic cruise capabilities.
aircraft carriers are not homebodies, and long-distance voyages must be the norm. in recent years, the chinese people's liberation army has carried out regular exercises and training activities in the taiwan strait, targeting external interference and provocations by "taiwan independence" forces. it is a legitimate move to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and a necessary action to maintain peace and stability in the taiwan strait. as the chinese ministry of defense emphasized, as long as there is no "taiwan independence", there is no need to worry.
"the pla will always be a staunch force in defending the reunification of the motherland and safeguarding the well-being of both sides of the taiwan strait." taiwan current affairs commentator chiu yi said that without the pla's deterrence and crackdown on "taiwan independence" forces, the dpp authorities headed by lai ching-te are very likely to lead taiwan down a path of no return to division, and external powers such as the united states will certainly spare no effort to squeeze out taiwan's surplus value, and in the end the taiwanese people may lose their right to be chinese. (text/wang lufei)
