Taiwan detects 6 Chinese naval ships, deploys military equipment for surveillance

According to Taiwan News, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) said that six Chinese naval ships were detected around Taiwan between 6 am on Monday (local time) and 6 am on Tuesday (local time).

Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor People’s Liberation Army (PLA) activity, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND).

According to Taiwan News, no PLA aircraft were spotted in Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

“As of 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today, 6 PLA ships were observed operating around Taiwan. We monitored the situation and responded accordingly. Today’s flight path is not depicted because no PLA aircraft were detected operating around Taiwan during this time frame,” Taiwan’s MND said on X.

This latest military activity by China adds to a series of similar provocative actions by Beijing in recent months. China has increased its military activities near Taiwan, including regular air and naval incursions into Taiwan’s ADIZ and military exercises near the island.

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked 321 Chinese military aircraft and 186 ships. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of grey zone tactics by increasing the number of military aircraft and naval ships operating around Taiwan.

Grey zone tactics are defined as “an effort, or series of efforts, beyond static-containment and reassurance, that attempts to achieve one’s security objectives without using direct and massive force.”

Taiwan has been governed independently since 1949. However, China considers Taiwan part of its territory and insists on reunification, by force if necessary.

In early July, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te accused the Chinese government of misinterpreting a UN resolution and making improper connections to its “one China” principle to justify its military activities against Taiwan, the Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

Beijing claims the UN resolution reaffirms its one-China principle, which implies there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China.