Taiwan deploys F-16 jets with anti-ship missiles amid China’s island invasion exercise
Taiwan’s Republic of China Air Force launched two multirole F-16 fighters fitted with anti-ship missiles from Hualien Air Force Base this week following reports that forces from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) would be holding drills simulating the capture of the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands, which Beijing calls the Dongsha Islands.
The Dongsha Islands are located in the northern part of the South China Sea, a body of water which contains many contested islands and reefs claimed by several nations, including China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Cambodia, Brunei and the Philippines.