Photo of China plane over Taiwan ‘worrying’

Beijing: A photo published by Chinese military showing its strategic bomber reportedly flying over Taiwan, days after Beijing’s spat with US President-elect Donald Trump over his questioning of ‘One China’ policy, has sparked concerns in the island, official media here reported.

The photo published by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force showing a long-range strategic bomber flying within visible range of Yushan, Taiwan’s highest mountain, has caused great concern in Taiwan amid debate about whether the mainland will reunify the island by force, state-run Global Times reported.

It said the PLA Air Force published the photo on its Sina Weibo account, showing an Xian H-6K bomber flying above the clouds with two mountain peaks rising in the distance.

“Military commentators on the mainland believe the peaks are of a mountain in Taiwan, which has made many netizens marvel at the PLA’s military capability,” the report said.

However, the spokesman of Taiwan’s defence ministry, Chen Zhongji, told the Central News Agency that military aircraft from the mainland could only fly outside the air defence identification zone of Taiwan and the ministry could monitor their movements, saying the guesses were “groundless”.

The daily quoted a military expert Chen Weihao as telling Taiwan-based satellite television channel and cable TV network TVBS that it was the first time that mainland aircraft had been photographed with Taiwan landscapes, which has a psychological impact on the island.

“Discussions about the possibility of the mainland reunifying Taiwan by force continues to gain momentum as pro- independence Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen keeps whipping up anti-mainland sentiment,” it said.

The report in the official media here followed war of words between China and Trump after he spoke to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.