TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked 10 Chinese military aircraft and six naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Monday (Feb. 26) and 6 a.m. on Tuesday (Feb. 27).

None of the 10 People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median or entered the southwest 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.

The MND also tracked one Chinese balloon at 3:48 p.m. on Monday crossing the median line 135 km (73 NM) northwest of Keelung. The balloon traveled east and disappeared at 4:29 p.m. on Monday.

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 219 times and naval ships 132 times. 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)