TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense tracked five Chinese military aircraft, 11 naval vessels, and six official ships between 6 a.m. on Saturday and the same time Sunday.
All five of the People’s Liberation Army aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the country’s central, southwestern, and eastern air defense identification zones, according to the ministry. In response, aircraft, naval ships, and coastal-based missile systems were deployed.
So far this month, the defense ministry has tracked Chinese aircraft 180 times and ships 203 times. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval vessels operating around the country.
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.”
