China has provoked the island republic of Taiwan with warships and military jets. According to the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense, 71 Chinese aircraft and seven ships were located near Taiwan within 24 hours as of 6 a.m. Monday morning. 47 aircraft crossed the center line of the Taiwan Strait. The strait separates Taiwan from mainland China.

China announced yesterday that it had held military maneuvers in the region. Exercises have been held in the sea and airspace near Taiwan, the People's Liberation Army Eastern Command said. It is a "determined response" to "the current escalation and provocation" by the United States and Taiwan. The US Congress passed the government's new budget on Friday, which also includes new loans for Taiwan to buy weapons.

The Chinese leadership regards Taiwan as part of the People's Republic and threatens to conquer it. Tensions had escalated in recent months. Following the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August, Beijing launched large-scale military maneuvers and is maintaining military pressure with increased deployments of warships and aircraft in the Taiwan Straits.