Taiwan detects 11 Chinese aircraft, 8 naval vessels near its territory

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) has tracked 11 Chinese military aircraft and eight naval vessels around the island nation during the last 24 hours till 6 am Thursday, reported Taiwan News.

According to the MND, out of 11 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, seven crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northern and southwestern sectors of the country's air defence identification zone (ADIZ) while one PLA helicopter was tracked in the southeast ADIZ.

Taiwan in its response, sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor the PLA activity, as reported by Taiwan News.

So far this month, Taiwan has detected Chinese military aircraft 209 times and naval/coast guard vessels 163 times.

Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating around Taiwan, Taiwan News reported.

Gray zone tactics are defined 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 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.