TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The People's Liberation Army (PLA) on Sunday (Jan. 8) announced that it had conducted its first joint drill around Taiwan in 2023 to counter "Taiwan independence forces," while Taiwan's military reported 57 PLA military aircraft and four warships had been detected around the country over a 24-hour period.

The PLA's Eastern Theater Command announced in a press release it conducted patrol and combat exercises in "the air and waters near Taiwan" on Sunday. Senior Colonel Shi Yi (施毅), spokesman of the theater command, said PLA forces practiced "strikes on land targets and amphibious assaults" during the maneuvers.

Shi said the drills were meant to "test the military's inter-service combat capability and fight against the provocations from foreign parties and the Taiwan secessionist force." 

These are China's first large-scale military exercises around Taiwan this year. The most recent were "strike drills" carried out on Dec. 25, in response to President Joe Biden's signing of the National Defense Authorization Act, which included US$2 billion in loans to Taiwan to purchase military equipment.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense on Monday (Jan. 9) announced that 57 PLA military aircraft and four People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels had been detected around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Sunday (Jan. 8) and 6 a.m. on Monday (Jan.9). Of the 57 PLA aircraft, 28 had either crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or had intruded into the southern sector of the air defense identification zone.