Current:Home > MarketsAnother Chinese spy balloon? Taiwan says it's spotted one flying over the region-LoTradeCoin
Another Chinese spy balloon? Taiwan says it's spotted one flying over the region
View Date:2024-12-23 23:44:46
Taiwan's Defense Ministry says it spotted a Chinese surveillance balloon over the Taiwan Strait along with a large-scale movement of military aircraft and ships.
The ministry said the balloon passed southwest of the northern port city of Keelung on Thursday night, then continued east before disappearing, possibly into the Pacific Ocean.
There seemed to be some uncertainty about whether the balloon was operated by the People's Liberation Army, the military branch of China's ruling Communist Party. The ministry referred to it both as a "PLA surveillance balloon" and as "PRC's balloon," using the acronym for the People's Republic of China, China's official name.
A Defense Ministry spokesperson said it had no additional information.
The incident came just over a month before Taiwan is to hold elections for president and the legislature and raises questions about possible Chinese efforts to influence the vote.
China's Defense Ministry offered no comment, and Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, "I'm not aware of the situation, and it is not a diplomatic question."
China has long blurred the lines between military and civilian functions, including in the South China Sea, where it operates a huge maritime militia - ostensibly civilian fishing boats that act under government orders to assert Beijing's territorial claims.
Taiwan has threatened to shoot down such balloons, but the ministry did not say what, if any, action was taken. It said the balloon was flying at an altitude of approximately 21,000 feet.
It also said 26 Chinese military aircraft and 10 navy ships were detected in the 24 hours before 6 a.m. Friday. Fifteen of the aircraft crossed the median line that is an unofficial divider between the sides, but which Beijing refuses to recognize, it said. Some also entered Taiwan's self-declared air defense identification zone outside the island's airspace, which encompasses the 100-mile-wide Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan's military monitored the situation with combat aircraft, navy vessels and land-based missile systems, the ministry said.
Such incursions occur regularly as a means of advertising China's threat to use force to annex the self-governing island republic it considers its own territory, wear down Taiwan's military capabilities, and impact morale among the armed forces and the public, who remain largely ambivalent to China's actions.
The Chinese missions have also prompted Taiwan to increase its purchases of aircraft from the United States, its chief ally, and strengthen its own defense industry, including producing submarines.
Beijing strongly protests all official contacts between the U.S. and Taiwan, but Taipei's aggressive diplomacy has helped build strong bipartisan support for it on Capitol Hill.
President Biden vowed sharper rules to track, monitor and potentially shoot down unknown aerial objects after a three-week high-stakes drama sparked by the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon transiting much of the United States early in the year.
The U.S. labeled the balloon a military craft and shot it down with a missile. It recovered what it said was sophisticated surveillance equipment. China responded angrily, saying it was only a weather balloon that had blown off course and called its downing a major overreaction.
- In:
- Taiwan
- China
veryGood! (32)
Related
- Gerry Faust, former Notre Dame football coach, dies at 89
- DJ Casper, creator of the iconic and ubiquitous 'Cha Cha Slide,' has died at 58
- Texans minority owner Javier Loya is facing rape charge in Kentucky
- Francia Raísa Shares Her Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Diagnosis
- Democrat George Whitesides wins election to US House, beating incumbent Mike Garcia
- Second body found at Arizona State Capitol in less than two weeks
- Q&A: Dominion Energy, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and Virginia’s Push Toward Renewables
- Kia, Hyundai among more than 200,000 vehicles recalled last week: Check car recalls here.
- NFL coaches diversity report 2024: Gains at head coach, setbacks at offensive coordinator
- DeSantis acknowledges Trump's defeat in 2020 election: Of course he lost
Ranking
- Pennsylvania House Republicans pick new floor leader after failing to regain majority
- Powerful storms killed 2 people and left more than 1 million customers without power
- CDC says COVID variant EG.5 is now dominant, including strain some call Eris
- Kim Kardashian Shares She Broke Her Shoulder
- TikToker Campbell “Pookie” Puckett Gives Birth, Welcomes First Baby With Jett Puckett
- New Google alert will tell you when you appear in search, help remove personal information
- Powerball jackpot grows to $145 million. See winning numbers for Aug. 7.
- Heading to the Eras tour? Don't bring these items to the concert
Recommendation
-
Mississippi woman pleads guilty to stealing Social Security funds
-
Sandra Bullock's partner Bryan Randall dead at 57 following private battle with ALS
-
Month-old walrus rescued 4 miles inland: Watch him get 'round-the-clock' care and cuddles
-
Half a million without power in US after severe storms slam East Coast, killing 2
-
This is Your Sign To Share this Luxury Gift Guide With Your Partner *Hint* *Hint
-
Rwanda genocide survivors criticize UN court’s call to permanently halt elderly suspect’s trial
-
Albert Alarr, 'Days of Our Lives' executive producer, ousted after misconduct allegations, reports say
-
Sandra Bullock's partner Bryan Randall dead at 57 following private battle with ALS