TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked seven Chinese military aircraft and three naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Monday (Jan. 22) and 6 a.m. on Tuesday (Jan. 23).
Of the seven People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, one jet fighter crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northeast sector of the country’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), according to the MND. In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed air defense missile systems to monitor the PLA activity.
In addition, one Chinese balloon was detected crossing the median line at 10:43 p.m. on Monday 163 km (88 NM) west of Keelung. It was traveling northeast and disappeared at 11:10 p.m.
So far this month, Beijing has sent 198 Chinese military aircraft and 95 naval ships around Taiwan. 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 resort to direct and sizable use of force.”
(MND image)
