December 27, 2009

(TAIPEI) China -- At 0630 local time, an intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) was fired from mainland China over the island of Taiwan and into the Pacific, landing about 200 miles east of the Taiwanese coast.

A US Defense Department spokesperson said that according to US satellite reconnaissance the missile was identified as a Dong Feng 21A, the same intermediate range ballistic missile that was used in the US-Malaysia war of 2008. Over the years, many rumors have circulated about how close the world came to a major nuclear exchange between the US and Malaysia as a result of those missiles being introduced into the war.

China acknowledged having launched the missile, saying it was merely conducting a missile test to make sure their large arsenal of these particular ballistic missiles were still accurate. The Taiwanese government immediately lodged a formal protest with the UN, condemning the attack as "a blatant attempt at intimidation by a bullying, aggressor nation."

All sources agree that this incident marks the latest and certainly the most provocative in a series of events that have led to greatly increased tensions between these two countries.