Taiwan detects 7 Chinese naval vessels, 3 military aircraft encircling it

The Ministry of National Defence (MND) tracked seven Chinese naval vessels and three military aircraft around Taiwan between 6 am on Wednesday and 6 am on Thursday, reported Taiwan News.

"3 PLA aircraft and 7 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and employed appropriate forces to respond," Taiwan Ministry of National Defence posted on X.

According to MND, Of the three People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, none crossed the Taiwan Strait median line or entered the southwest corner of the country's air defence identification zone (ADIZ).

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

On April 3, Taiwan Defence Ministry detected 30 Chinese military aircraft and nine navy vessels operating around its nation between Tuesday 6 am and Wednesday 6 am, Taiwan Ministry of National Defence said.

It added that 20 Chinese aircraft entered its northern middle line and Taiwan's southwest air defence identification zone (ADIZ).

In an official post on X, the Taiwan Ministry of National Defence posted said, "30 PLA aircraft and 9 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 20 of the aircraft entered Taiwan's northern, middle line, and SW ADIZ. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and employed appropriate force to respond."

Additionally, Taiwan tracked seven Chinese naval vessels and six military aircraft around the nation amid escalating cross-strait tensions on Tuesday, Taiwan News reported.

According to Taiwan News, so far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 39 times and naval vessels 20 times.

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

Grey 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.