TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked 16 Chinese military aircraft and eight naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Friday (April 12) and the same time Saturday (April 13). 

Of the 16 People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, 12 crossed the Taiwan Strait median line and entered the southwest corner 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 PLA activity. 

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 101 times and naval vessels 79 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."