The News
China intensified a de facto blockade of Taiwan and railed against a US jet fighter deal with Manila, heightening tensions with Washington.
The second day of live-fire drills near the self-governing island, which Beijing claims as part of its territory, involved an aircraft carrier as well as dozens more ships and jets. Chinese officials meanwhile criticized the US for agreeing to sell 20 F-16 fighter jets to the Philippines.
Ties between Washington and Beijing are worsening, with a deal for a US investment firm to buy ports near the Panama Canal from a Hong Kong company in doubt and China set to be among those most affected by today’s White House tariff announcement.
AD