TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked nine Chinese military aircraft and four Chinese Coast Guard vessels around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Friday (May 31) and the same time Saturday (June 1). 

Of the nine People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, eight crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the southwestern portion of the nation’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), according to the MND.

In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor the PLA activity. 

Since the start of May, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 463 times and naval/coast guard vessels 272 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.”