Chinese President Xi
Jinping gave a speech on Friday calling for peaceful development of relations
between Beijing and Taipei.
The accident coincided with
Beijing's celebrations of the 95th anniversary of the founding of the ruling
Communist Party.
Taiwan has mistakenly fired
a supersonic anti-ship missile in the direction of China, the Taiwanese navy
said.
The 500-tonne patrol boat
Chinchiang was undergoing an inspection inside a military base when the missile
was fired by accident on Friday.
There were no injuries
caused by the error, Taiwan's official Central News Agency reported.
It said the missile - a
Hsiung Feng III - landed in waters off the Taiwanese islands of Penghu, between
Taiwan and China.
A preliminary investigation
showed that its operators may have failed to follow proper procedures.
"Our initial
investigation found that the operation was not done in accordance with normal
procedure," Taiwan's Vice Admiral Mei Chia-shu told reporters.
He added that a full
investigation was under way. Taiwan's navy has sent a helicopter and boats to
search for the missile.
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs
Council, which handles China policy, declined to say whether the incident had
been reported to Beijing.
Ties between Taipei and
Beijing have deteriorated since China-sceptic Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen
was elected in January.
China still insists that
self-ruling Taiwan is part of its territory, even though the two sides split in
1949 after a civil war.
It has not ruled out using
force to bring about reunification.
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