The Defense Ministry announced that 22 People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft have been detected since 7 a.m. on Friday, 13 of which crossed the Taiwan Strait median line or entered Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ).
Defense Ministry Spokesperson Sun Li-fang (孫立方) said the aircraft included J-10, J-16, H-6, SU-30, KJ-500, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Additionally, the aircraft conducted joint combat patrols with five PLA Navy (PLAN) vessels. Sun said the Taiwan military used joint intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance methods to closely monitor them. They also dispatched aircraft and monitored ship and shore-mounted missile systems.
The recent uptick in PLA intrusions into the areas around Taiwan come on the heels of two events that raised objections from Beijing. First was Vice President Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) transits through two U.S. cities while on a diplomatic trip to Paraguay. Then, on Wednesday, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) greenlit the potential sale of infrared search and tracking (IRST) systems to Taiwan at a value of about US$500 million. Since the IRST can assist radar in detecting the infrared heat source generated by stealth fighters without being detected by enemy aircraft, it could assist in detecting the PLA’s J-20 stealth fighters.