Taiwan’s Defense Ministry reported on Thursday that it had detected a record 66 Chinese military aircraft around the island within 24 hours, marking the highest number this year.
A day after reports of Beijing conducting naval exercises in nearby waters. China, maintaining a near-daily military presence around Taiwan, asserts its claim over the self-ruled island and has openly stated its willingness to use force if necessary to assert control.
The record-setting activity follows an incident where Taipei observed Chinese aircraft headed toward the western Pacific for exercises with the PLA aircraft carrier Shandong. According to the defence ministry, “66 PLA aircraft and seven PLAN vessels were operating around Taiwan up until 6 am (2200 GMT Wednesday) today,” and Taiwan has “responded accordingly.”
Of the Chinese aircraft detected, 56 crossed the sensitive median line that divides the Taiwan Strait—a narrow 180-kilometer (110-mile) waterway separating the island from mainland China. The Defense Ministry illustrated some aircraft approaching within 33 nautical miles (61 kilometres) of Taiwan’s southern tip. The previous yearly record occurred in May, with Beijing dispatching 62 military aircraft and 27 naval vessels around Taiwan during war games initiated shortly after the inauguration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing views as a “dangerous separatist.”
Military expert Su Tzu-yun suggested that China’s intensified military presence is a response to recent political events, including a new de facto U.S. ambassador’s supportive meeting with President Lai. Su, from Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, explained, “Beijing puts pressure on Taiwan to express its displeasure at the support Taipei receives.”
On Wednesday, Defense Minister Wellington Koo noted that the Shandong did not pass through the Bashi Channel, typically used by Chinese ships heading to the Pacific. Instead, it navigated further south through the Balintang Channel toward the Western Pacific, north of the Philippines’ Babuyan Island, about 250 kilometres south of Bashi.
Neighbouring Japan confirmed on Tuesday that four PLA navy vessels, including the Shandong, were sailing 520 kilometres southeast of Miyako Island. Meanwhile, the Philippines’ military public affairs chief reported ongoing China-Russia exercises in the Philippine Sea without commenting directly on the Shandong.
Lin Jian, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reiterated on Thursday that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory,” emphasizing the unyielding determination of the Chinese people to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity during a regular press briefing.
This surge in military activities, described by experts as “grey zone tactics,” aims to pressure and exhaust Taiwan’s defences without escalating to outright warfare. Despite President Lai’s calls for dialogue, China has largely rebuffed these overtures, continuing its military and coast guard activities around Taiwan and its outlying islands.
