Taipei City [Taiwan], February 10: Taiwan's defense agency said on February 10 that it had discovered eight hot air balloons from mainland China, of which two flew through the sky above the island.
A statement from the Taiwan Defense Agency said that the eight hot air balloons mentioned above were all discovered on February 9, right before the lunar new year, at altitudes from 4,500 m to 11,600 m, according to AFP.
This is the highest number of hot air balloons discovered since Taipei began regularly publishing data on it in December 2023.
China 's Ministry of National Defense did not immediately comment. Last month, the Chinese government rejected Taiwan 's repeated claims of hot air balloon discovery, saying they were for meteorological research purposes and that Taipei should not exaggerate the issue for its own motives. politics. China claims Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out using force to unify the island.
Beijing has stepped up military pressure on Taipei in recent years, deploying warplanes and naval vessels around the island almost daily.
In February last year, Taiwan's armed forces alerted aviation authorities after spotting a hot air balloon in the island's airspace, but did not say where the balloon came from or provide a detailed location. details.
The latest hot air balloon discovery took place after Taiwan's leadership election last month, with the victory of Mr. Lai Thanh Duc of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party. Beijing has criticized him as having "dangerous" separatist ideology.
Before the election on January 13, China warned that Mr. Lai's victory would bring "war" to Taiwan. But Beijing did not dispatch a large number of fighter jets and naval vessels near the island immediately after the election as expected.
The record for the number of Chinese fighter jets deployed near Taiwan within 24 hours was recorded in September 2023, when Taipei reported 103 Chinese aircraft flying around the island.
Mr. Lai will take office in May, succeeding leader Tsai Ing-wen. According to Reuters, he proposed negotiations with China on issues across the Taiwan Strait but was rejected by Beijing. He said only the people of Taiwan can decide their future.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper