China Warns US On Taiwan Guidance As PLA Flies Record Sortie Over ADIZ

China's Foreign Ministry has warned the United States overnew guidance sent by the State Department regarding diplomatic interactions with Taiwanese officials.

• The State Department guidance "...underscores [that] Taiwan is a vibrant democracy and an important security and economic partner that is also a force for good in the international community."
• The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued comments saying that it "strongly suggested the US stop playing with fire on the Taiwan issue."
• The spat comes a day after China's People's Liberation Army flew 25 military aircraft into Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) on 12 April. This is the largest single sortie flown into Taiwanese airspace since Taiwan's gov't began publishing details of PLA incursions into the ADIZ last year.
• Speaking to Meet the Press on 11 April, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said regarding China's actions towards Taiwan, "What we've seen, and what is of real concern to us, is increasingly aggressive actions by the government in Beijing directed at Taiwan, raising tensions in the straits,"
• Taiwan is set to remain one of the most combustible geopolitical flashpoints globally over the coming months and years, with the US consistently reiterating its support for Taiwan while Beijing continues to fly warplanes into Taiwanese airspace.