Taiwan detects two Chinese aircraft, six naval vessels, two balloons around nation

Taipei [Taiwan], December 26 : Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence detected two sorties of Chinese aircraft, six naval vessels and two Chinese balloons around the country as of 6 am (local time) on Friday.

"Two sorties of PLA aircraft and six PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 am (UTC+8) today. Two PRC balloons were detected during this timeframe. #ROCArmedFroces have monitored the situation and responded," the MND said in a post on X.

Earlier on Thursday, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence detected six sorties of Chinese aircraft, eight naval vessels and one ship operating around the country as of 6 am (local time).

As per the MND, of the six sorties, two crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ).

"Six sorties of PLA aircraft, eight PLAN vessels and one official ship operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 am (UTC+8) today. Two out of six sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's southwestern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded," the ministry said in a X post.

Meanwhile, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) accused China of engaging in "transnational suppression and political manipulation" after a Chinese public security agency claimed that Taiwanese nationals were responsible for a smuggling scheme involving a vessel crewed by Chinese that was damaged undersea cables earlier this year, according to the report from Taipei Times.

In June, a Taiwanese court sentenced the Chinese captain of the Togo-registered ship Hong Tai 58 to three years in prison after determining he was guilty of deliberately damaging subsea cables off Taiwan in February, which raised concerns among officials.

The public security bureau in Weihai, located in China's Shandong Province, stated that its investigation into the incident revealed that two Taiwanese individuals orchestrated a multi-vessel operation that was unlawfully transporting frozen goods into China. These findings from Chinese authorities followed interviews with seven crew members from the Hong Tai 58, as reported by Taipei Times.

The MAC has dismissed the Chinese findings in a statement.

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