TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Coast Guard reported two recent incursions by Chinese military vessels near Dongsha Island in the South China Sea.

The two Chinese coast guard ships disabled their automated identification systems to conceal their movements, reported UDN. Reports indicate the Chinese ships were likely taking advantage of the ongoing Han Kuang military exercises to test Taiwan’s territorial defenses. 

The first incursion occurred at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday by the China coast guard ship No. 3101 about 42.5 nautical miles (79 km) northeast of the island. The second incursion happened at 9 a.m. when China coast guard ship No. 5303 approached within 43 nautical miles of Dongsha Island on Thursday, July 10.

The Taiwan Coast Guard ship, Tainan, was dispatched within 30 minutes to confront ship no. 3101 on Wednesday, coming within .6 nautical miles of the Chinese ship’s location. Despite warnings to leave immediately, the 3101 vessel remained in the area until 5:55 p.m. on Friday, and was as close as 26 nautical miles from the island. 

Taiwan Coast Guard sent the Yunlin to monitor the No. 5303 ship which left the area by 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, after several hours. Similar incursions by Chinese vessels in waters near Dongsha Island, now numbering over a dozen so far this year, were also reported in late June. 

China regularly engages in gray zone tactics to test Taiwan’s defenses and erode the government’s ability to respond to threats effectively.