FirstFT: Taiwan is targeting Chinese drones

Good morning. Taiwan has begun targeting Chinese drones flying over its outlying islands for the first time, highlighting the risk that Beijing’s military pressure on Taipei could lead to actual conflict.

Soldiers on Kinmen, a Taiwanese-controlled island just off the Chinese city of Xiamen, shot at a Chinese drone for the first time on Tuesday afternoon, the Army Kinmen Defence Command said. It said the uncrewed vehicle then flew away in the direction of Xiamen.

“According to procedure, we warn, report, try to expel with measures such as flares, and if that fails, we fire shots,” said Major General Chang Jung-shun, spokesman for the command.

The more assertive approach comes as Taipei seeks to balance the risk of sparking outright conflict against its desire to block China from demonstrating effective control over nearby waters and airspace or even Taiwanese territory.

Do you think Beijing’s military pressure on Taipei will lead to conflict? Tell me what you think at firstft@ft.com. Thank you for reading FirstFT Asia — Emily

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2. Musk seizes on whistleblower report Elon Musk is using a whistleblower report by Twitter’s former security chief to bolster his legal fight to terminate his $44bn deal to buy the social media company. Musk’s legal team has claimed that if true, Peiter Zatko’s allegations breach several aspects of the merger agreement struck in April but which the billionaire has been seeking to abandon since July.

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4. Kerry seeks restart to US emissions talks with China The US climate envoy John Kerry praised China’s efforts at tackling global warming and urged Beijing to resume suspended talks on the issue, even as tensions flare with Washington over the status of Taiwan. The former secretary of state urged Xi Jinping to restart climate talks with the US, saying he was “hopeful” the countries could “get back together”.

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The day ahead

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What else we’re reading

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If you have had Covid-19, have you since suffered from new health conditions? Tell us in our latest poll below.

Hopes for US-China audit deal A deal last week for US regulators to inspect Chinese companies’ audits could prevent about 200 groups from being kicked off American exchanges. US officials — as well as hundreds of Chinese companies and global investors that own about $1.4tn of their shares — are hoping that Beijing’s rare concession is for real.

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Leadership

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