Things between Taiwan and China are tense right now. As China continues with live-fire exercises closeby, Taiwan has dispatched ships of its own to keep an eye on them. However, a recent photo circulating online shows just how close the two countries are cutting it.
China has been conducting live-fire exercises around Taiwan. The drills are in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan last week.
The defense ministry says that earlier this week, there were as many as 13 naval ships still sailing around Taiwan.
Now, a photo has surfaced online showing a Taiwanese and Chinese naval vessel sailing very close to one another. The picture was taken in waters off of southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City. The two ships in question are a Taiwan Cheng Kung-class frigate and a Chinese Changchun-class destroyer. According to the photo’s original poster, the Taiwanese ship was trying to prevent the Chinese vessel from sailing too close to the Taiwan Strait’s median line. At their closest, the two ships were a mere 180 meters apart.
The Cheng Kung’s displacement is around 4,000 tons. It can sail up to 29 knots and is equipped with a variety of missiles. On the other hand, the Changchun destroyer’s displacement is about 7,000 tons. It can sail up to 30 knots, and is also equipped with a variety of missiles.
With tensions looming, and ships sailing so close…Some are worried that one wrong step, or one wrong shift in the winds is all it would take to spark conflict.