Taiwan’s Kinmen island, with China’s Xiamen in the background. Soldiers on the island targeted a Chinese drone, which flew away towards Xiamen © Getty Images
Taiwan has begun targeting Chinese drones flying over its outlying islands for the first time, highlighting the risk that Beijing’s military pressure on Taipei could lead to actual conflict.
Soldiers on Kinmen, a Taiwanese-controlled island just off the Chinese city of Xiamen, shot at a Chinese drone for the first time on Tuesday afternoon, the army’s Kinmen Defence Command said. It said the uncrewed vehicle then flew away in the direction of Xiamen.
“According to procedure, we warn, report, try to expel with measures such as flares, and if that fails, we fire shots,” said Major General Chang Jung-shun, spokesperson for the command.
The more assertive approach comes as Taipei seeks to balance the risk of sparking outright conflict against its desire to block China from…
