Should defending Taiwan be a red line for the U.S.?
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 14 October 2021
⏱️ ? minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In recent days, record numbers of Chinese warplanes have flown into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, signifying a deteriorating relationship between Taiwan and China — and putting the United States in an awkward position.
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Last week, China flew nearly 150 warplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone. Taiwan responded by scrambling to engage its fighter jets and missile systems.
Meanwhile, the United States is in an increasingly awkward spot. While the United States may technically recognize Beijing over Taipei, it is deepening its ties to the island, says foreign affairs columnist Ishaan Tharoor.
Today on the show: how the situation has escalated, and what it means for geopolitics.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Last week, a record number of Chinese military planes entered airspace near Taiwan. |
| 0:08.2 | These planes were not welcome, or even politically allowed. |
| 0:12.0 | Well, the two consecutive days China has violated Taiwan's airspace by flying military jets |
| 0:17.6 | around the self-governing island unannounced. |
| 0:20.3 | Sending nearly 150 war planes into Taiwan's air defense zone, forcing Taiwan's fighter |
| 0:26.3 | jets to scramble. |
| 0:27.6 | And it's not the fact that they did do these incursions, these incursions do periodically |
| 0:32.4 | happen. |
| 0:33.4 | That's the shan the roar he covers foreign affairs for the post. |
| 0:36.6 | But the frequency and the volume was striking. |
| 0:39.9 | And then also the types of planes that were used. |
| 0:42.9 | These included bombers, these included anti-summarine planes. |
| 0:47.0 | In other words, war planes that made people in Taiwan worry that they were under threat. |
| 0:52.9 | And all of that lends to a broader narrative that's in motion that China is really inching |
| 0:59.5 | and inching closer towards being prepared for an invasion of Taiwan. |
| 1:06.6 | From the newsroom of the Washington Post, this is Post Reports. |
| 1:10.0 | I'm Martine Powers. |
| 1:12.0 | It's Thursday, October 14th. |
| 1:14.8 | Today on our show, how these airplanes symbolize an increasingly tense relationship between |
| 1:20.3 | mainland China and Taiwan. |
| 1:22.9 | And how that's putting the US in a very awkward situation. |
| 1:27.3 | But to understand what's happening now, you have to go back to 1949, to this moment when |
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