Taiwan Finds 4 Chinese Balloons Close To A Major Air Base Before Elections

Taipei’s defence ministry stated Wednesday that four Chinese balloons were detected traveling across the median line separating Taiwan and China, with three floating directly above the island.

A ministry image showed three Chinese balloons heading northeast above Taiwan after appearing southwest of Ching-Chuan-Kang, which is home to a military airbase in the western city of Taichung.

One of them had the lowest measured altitude of 12,000 feet (3,658 metres).

The Balloon occurrences on Tuesday occurred less than two weeks before the self-ruled island’s key election, and it was the second day in a row that such items were identified above Taiwan.

In December, the ministry publically identified six incidents for the first time.

It stated Wednesday that it was closely monitoring and would take appropriate measures based on the nature, altitude, and potential hazards of the targets.

The balloons are for military coercion and psychological warfare, according to conflict analyst Ou Sifu of Taiwan’s Institute of National Defense and Security Research.

“The presidential election is coming and balloons are a kind of military intimidating tool”, Ou Sifu explained, adding that China hoped to influence more pro-Beijing votes.

Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its sovereignty and has increased military and political pressures on President Tsai Ing-wen’s government in recent years.

It has sent in an unprecedented number of bombers and navy vessels near the island, called grey zone techniques by conflict experts to intimidate Taiwan’s forces.

Beijing has also refused to interact with Tsai during her reign since she does not recognize China’s claim to Taiwan.

Lai Ching-te, a self-described pragmatic worker for Taiwan’s independence, is her deputy and the current frontrunner for the January 13 election. He has been labeled a troublemaker and a separatist by Beijing.

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