The alert warns of a “missile passing over Taiwan.” However, Taiwan’s foreign minister assured the public that it was a satellite.
Taiwanese authorities have issued an urgent message after a Chinese satellite was launched over the island.
The mobile phone alert was sent on Tuesday after Chinese state media confirmed the launch of a scientific satellite. The warning comes as Taiwan prepares for next week’s elections. China, which claims the island as its own, is watching closely, warning that the outcome could further escalate tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
“China launched [a] “A satellite has passed through southern airspace,” the alert said in Chinese. “All citizens, please be careful about your safety.”
However, the English version announced it as an “air raid warning” and warned that “a missile will pass over Taiwan.”
The alert was issued as Foreign Minister Joseph Wu was holding a press conference in Taipei ahead of Saturday’s presidential and parliamentary elections.
He assured those present that the alert was for a satellite.
“When rockets fly openly over our skies, some of their launchers and debris will fall into this region,” Wu told reporters. “That’s why our National Warning Center issues this kind of alert. It’s happened before.”
China’s state-run Xinhua news agency reported that China launched a “new astronomical satellite” called the Einstein probe from southwestern Sichuan province.
The satellite will be used to observe things such as “mysterious transient phenomena in the universe comparable to the flickering of fireworks.”
China has maintained a near-daily military presence around Taiwan in the run-up to the election, with fighter jets, naval ships and drones seen in or over the narrow sea area that separates the island.
The leading candidate, current Taiwan Vice President Lai Ching-de, accused the Chinese government of using “all means” to influence the vote.
China has described the election as a choice between war and peace.