TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked 21 Chinese military aircraft and four naval vessels around Taiwan as of 5 p.m. on Tuesday (Nov. 8).
Of the 21 People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, three planes were monitored in the southwest corner of Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), including one Shaanxi Y-8 electronic warfare plane, one Shaanxi Y-8 reconnaissance plane, and one Shenyang J-11 fighter jet, according to the MND. No PLA aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line on Tuesday.
In response, Taiwan sent aircraft, naval ships, and used land-based missile systems to monitor the PLA aircraft and vessels.
So far this month, Beijing has sent 189 military aircraft and 27 naval ships around Taiwan. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by routinely sending aircraft into Taiwan’s ADIZ.
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.”
Flight paths of three out of 21 Chinese planes on Nov. 8. (MND image)
