Taiwan detects 8 Chinese aircraft, 8 naval vessels near its territory

Taiwan tracked eight Chinese aircraft and eight naval vessels near its territory on Friday morning (local time), the country’s defence ministry said.

Three of the aircraft entered Taiwan’s south-western Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), following which Taiwanese armed forces responded accordingly.

“8 PLA aircraft and 8 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 3 of the aircraft entered our southwestern ADIZ. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and responded accordingly,” Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence (MND) posted on X.

Since September 2020, China has intensified its use of gray zone tactics by increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating near Taiwan.

So far in June, Taiwan has detected Chinese military aircraft near its territory over 132 times and naval/coast guard vessels more than 109 times, Taiwan News reported.

Earlier, Taiwan detected 23 Chinese military aircraft and seven naval vessels operating around the island country from 6 am (local time) on Wednesday to 6 am (local time) on Thursday.

Of the 23 Chinese military aircraft, 19 crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s southwest and eastern Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

In response to China’s action, Taiwanese armed forces sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor China’s activity.

According to a Taiwan News report, gray zone tactics are termed as “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.”

This latest incident adds to a series of similar provocations by China in recent months. China has increased its military activities around Taiwan, including regular air and naval incursions into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China, has long been a contentious issue in China’s foreign policy. China continues to assert its sovereignty over Taiwan and considers it a part of its territory and insists on eventual reunification, by force if necessary.