Taiwan detects 21 Chinese military aircraft, 7 naval ships in its territory

In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor the PLA activity, reports say

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) has announced that it has detected 21 Chinese military aircraft and seven naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 am on Saturday and 6 am on Sunday, Taiwan News reported.

According to Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence, of the 21 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, 14 crossed the Taiwan Strait median line, adding that three entered the southwest corner of Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) and two were detected in the northeast ADIZ.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence disclosed in an official post on X, stating, "We detected 21 PLA aircraft and 7 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 17 of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded accordingly."

In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor the PLA activity, as per Taiwan News.

On Saturday morning, Taiwan detected 21 Chinese military aircraft, including Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, Shaanxi Y-8 transport aircraft, and drones, of which 17 crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or its extension, Taiwan News reported.

According to Taiwan News, the aircraft dispatched by the Chinese military were spotted starting at 8:15 am and included Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, Shaanxi Y-8 transport aircraft, and various types of unmanned aerial vehicles, the MND said, as per Taiwan News.

As per the ministry, the 17 planes either crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ) off the northern, central and southwestern parts of the country, in tandem with patrolling activities carried out by Chinese military vessels in the areas.

In response to this breach by China, MND affirmed that they are closely monitoring the situation and have "dispatched appropriate assets" to respond to the situation accordingly.

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 193 times and naval vessels 125 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.

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 resorting to direct and sizable use of force."

The median line of the Taiwan Strait served for decades as a tacit border, but the Chinese military has more flagrantly sent aircraft, warships, and drones across it since former United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022, becoming the highest-level US official to visit in nearly three decades.

An ADIZ is a self-declared area in which a country claims the right to identify, locate, and control approaching foreign aircraft but is not part of its territorial airspace as defined by international law.