Two sorties of Chinese drones were detected flying around the perimeter of Taiwan proper between 6am on Saturday and 6am yesterday, according to the Ministry of National Defense.
A total of 31 Chinese military aircraft — which included several drones — and 12 Chinese warships were detected operating in and near the Taiwan Strait over the 24-hour period, the ministry said.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said the maneuvers were likely aimed at affecting public sentiment in Taiwan, demonstrating defiance toward the US’ two-plus-two talks with India and Australia, and enacting China’s polarized strategy of pushing war and peace as two alternatives against Taiwan.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense
Two of the drones had entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) from the northwest separately after 11:50am on Saturday, and then circled Taiwan proper, the ministry said.
Japan’s Ministry of Defense on Saturday also detected a Chinese drone flying in waters over the East China Sea between Taiwan and Yonaguni Island in Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture, before turning south toward the Bashi Channel, it said.
The Japanese ministry also detected a Shaanxi Y-9 electronic warfare aircraft flying over the East China Sea in airspace between Okinawa Island and Miyako Island in Okinawa Prefecture, it said.
Beijing frequently reacts to international cooperation in the region by holding drills in or near the Taiwan Strait, Su said.
Citing an example, he said that it had held drills following an announcement by Vietnam and the Philippines about planned joint naval exercises.
Beijing’s attitude toward Taiwan was also demonstrated on China’s People’s Liberation Army Day on Thursday last week, when it published through state media cartoons depicting attacks on Taiwanese cities including Taipei, Kaohsiung and Hualien, he said.
Separately, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) yesterday said he believes that China’s recent military exercises near Taiwan were part of its cognitive warfare efforts, and were aimed at intimidating the Taiwanese public.
Taiwan should improve its defense capabilities and integrate international cooperation into its strategy to better prepare itself against Chinese threats, he said.
However, aggression from China would only result in democracies strengthening ties and cooperation, he said, adding that Taiwan would face any threat head-on.
The military has spotted two Chinese warships operating in waters near Penghu County in the Taiwan Strait and sent its own naval and air forces to monitor the vessels, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said. Beijing sends warships and warplanes into the waters and skies around Taiwan on an almost daily basis, drawing condemnation from Taipei. While the ministry offers daily updates on the locations of Chinese military aircraft, it only rarely gives details of where Chinese warships are operating, generally only when it detects aircraft carriers, as happened last week. A Chinese destroyer and a frigate entered waters to the southwest
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
NON-RED SUPPLY: Boosting the nation’s drone industry is becoming increasingly urgent as China’s UAV dominance could become an issue in a crisis, an analyst said Taiwan’s drone exports to Europe grew 41.7-fold from 2024 to last year, with demand from Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression the most likely driver of growth, a study showed. The Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET) in a statement on Wednesday said it found that many of Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) sales were from Poland and the Czech Republic. These countries likely transferred the drones to Ukraine to aid it in its fight against the Russian invasion that started in 2022, it said. Despite the gains, Taiwan is not the dominant drone exporter to these markets, ranking second and fourth
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comment last year on Tokyo’s potential reaction to a Taiwan-China conflict has forced Beijing to rewrite its invasion plans, a retired Japanese general said. Takaichi told the Diet on Nov. 7 last year that a Chinese naval blockade or military attack on Taiwan could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan, potentially allowing Tokyo to exercise its right to collective self-defense. Former Japan Ground Self-Defense Force general Kiyofumi Ogawa said in a recent speech that the remark has been interpreted as meaning Japan could intervene in the early stages of a Taiwan Strait conflict, undermining China’s previous assumptions
RSS