Taiwan detects 19 Chinese aircraft, 8 naval vessels around its territory

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND) detected 19 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, eight People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels, and one official ship operating in the region up until 6 am (UTC+8) today.

Of the 19 aircraft, 15 crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ).

A Chinese balloon was also detected during this period.

Sharing a post on X, MND wrote, "19 PLA aircraft, 8 PLAN vessels and 1 official ship operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today."

It added, "15 out of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern ADIZ. 1 PRC balloon was detected during this timeframe."

Meanwhile, following the recent transit of two US ships through the Taiwan Strait, Beijing reiterated its position on Taiwan, emphasised that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory and stated that it "opposes any country challenging or threatening China's sovereignty and security under the pretext of freedom of navigation."

During a regular press conference on Wednesday, Guo Jiakun, Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said, "Let me stress that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The Taiwan question has nothing to do with freedom of navigation but bears on China's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

He added, "China firmly opposes any country challenging or threatening China's sovereignty and security under the pretext of freedom of navigation."

In recent weeks, China has visibly increased its capacity to conduct amphibious assaults on Taiwan's beaches with new naval equipment. This includes the formal launch of a unique advanced landing helicopter assault (LHA) vessel and the mass production of floating bridge docks to aid ship unloading during beach landings.

The Taiwan-China conflict remained a longstanding geopolitical issue centred on Taiwan's sovereignty. While Taiwan functioned as a de facto independent state with its own government, military, and economy, Beijing considered it a breakaway province under the "One China" policy.

Since the Chinese Civil War (1945-1949), when the Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan, China had used diplomatic, economic, and military measures to pressure Taiwan, which continued to assert its independence with strong domestic support.