Taiwan detects 29 Chinese aircraft, eight naval vessels near its territory

Taiwan detected 29 Chinese military aircraft, eight naval vessels and one official ship operating near its territory from 6 am (local time) on Wednesday to 6 am (local time) on Thursday.

According to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence (MND), 29 of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s northern, southwestern, and eastern Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ).

In response to Chinese incursions, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor PLA activity.

“29 PLA aircraft, 8 PLAN vessels and 1 official ships operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 20 of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s northern, central and southwestern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded,” Taiwan’s MND stated in a post on X.

This latest Chinese military activity adds to a series of similar provocations by Beijing in recent months. China has intensified its military activities around Taiwan, including regular air and naval incursions into Taiwan’s ADIZ and military exercises near the island.

Since September 2020, China has intensified its use of gray zone tactics by increasing the number of military aircraft and naval vessels operating near Taiwan, according to a Taiwan News report.

Gray zone tactics are considered “an effort or series of efforts beyond steady-state deterrence and assurance that attempts to achieve one’s security objectives without resort to direct and sizable use of force,” the report said.

Taiwan has been governed independently since 1949. However, China considers Taiwan part of its territory and insists on eventual reunification, by force if necessary.

Earlier this month, the Secretary-General of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Lin Yu-Chang, said that “Taiwan’s sovereignty is inviolable.” He made the remarks at a recent event in San Francisco, Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

Speaking at a meeting hosted by the Taiwanese American Federation of Northern California (TAFNC), Lin affirmed that “Taiwanese have the defining power to decide their own future.”

Lin highlighted that the themes of Taiwanese sovereignty and self-determination have been central to President Lai Ching-te’s speeches since his inauguration in May.

In a press briefing before his keynote address at the dinner lecture, Lin discussed how Taiwan’s global importance has increased due to major events like the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine War. Lin reiterated that “supporting Taiwan” is a bipartisan stance in the United States, reflecting shared democratic and freedom values.

Lin Yu-Chang, who served as Taiwan’s minister of the interior between January 2023 and May 2024, is currently on a 13-day visit to the US. After arriving in the US on August 31, the DPP secretary-general visited New York, Washington, DC, and Houston, CNA reported.

Lin said he will not reveal details regarding his meetings with US officials, reflecting sensitivities related to the upcoming US presidential election, tense US-China relations, and Beijing’s ongoing opposition to Taiwan’s sovereignty and the DPP.