TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense tracked 28 Chinese military aircraft and seven naval ships around Taiwan between 6 a.m. on Thursday and 6 a.m. on Friday. 

Twenty-five of the 28 People’s Liberation Army aircraft crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the country’s northern and southern air defense identification zone, according to the MND. 

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

So far this month, the MND has tracked Chinese military aircraft 353 times and ships 140 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 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.”