【明報專訊】CHINA'S People's Liberation Army (PLA) began to encircle Taiwan yesterday (4 August) and launched live-fire drills. Its fighter jets repeatedly crossed the Taiwan Strait median line claimed by Taiwan. There were even ballistic missiles believed to have flown over Taiwan for the first time, while warplanes from the Taiwanese military forces, loaded with bombs, were also scrambled. As for the US, no military actions have been observed so far apart from its sending surveillance planes to monitor China's actions at a distance.