Taiwan scrambled jets on Saturday to warn away 20 Chinese aircraft including 14 that crossed the Taiwan Strait median line, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, news agency Reuters reported. It also detected 14 Chinese military ships conducting activities around the Taiwan Strait, the ministry said in a statement.
Amidst China’s military drills in the Taiwan Strait, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken Saturday said that though US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taipei visit was peaceful, Beijing launched 11 ballistic missiles. Blinken’s comment follows reports that Chinese aircraft and warships Saturday practiced for an attack on Taiwan. Meanwhile, an angry Beijing announced Friday it was halting dialogue with the US in a number of areas, including between top military commanders, on climate change, and exchanges on countering cross-border crime and drug trafficking, all moves Washington called “irresponsible.”
As far as India is concerned, the impact is likely to be minimal, according to Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das. The Governor said Taiwan accounts for only 0.7 percent of India’s overall trade and the capital flows from the island are also not very high. “…so far as India is concerned, you know, our trade with Taiwan is minuscule. It’s about 0.7 percent of our total trade. So therefore the impact on India is expected to be very, very, very negligible,” said the governor.
Comments