Def Min-China's No-Fly Zone 'Mainly Related To Aerospace Activities'

MNI (London) - The Taiwanese Defence Ministry has issued comments following a Reuters story claiming that China is planning to impose a no-fly zone from 16-18 April in an area north of Taiwan that includes parts of Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ). Ministry says the no-fly zone is "mainly related to aerospace activities" and states that the imposition of a no-fly zone could be due to a planned satellite launch by China.

• Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno states that the Japanese gov't has heard about the no-fly zone and they will 'continue monitoring carefully'. Adds that the zone is outside of Japan's territorial waters, and mirroring the Taiwanese comments states that the establishment of the zone 'concerns aerospace activities'.
• Cross-strait tensions remain at multi-month highs. China has conducted sizeable military drills around Taiwan in recent days, that included practicing blockades and precision strikes on the island. Following the drills, the Chinese military stated that “The theater’s troops are ready to fight at all times and can fight at any time to resolutely smash any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and foreign interference attempts,”