TAIWAN: Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence  announced on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, that 12 Chinese aircraft, 7 navy ships, and three balloons were spotted near the island by 6-am.

Out of the 12 planes, 8 crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's southwestern Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). The Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence  shared this information on  social media X, saying, "12 PLA aircraft and 7 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 am, today." They also reported the sighting of three balloons during this time.

China has, in latest, increased its military presence near Taiwan. This includes the launch of a massive landing helicopter assault ship, unlike any other in the world. China is also producing floating bridge docks to help unload equipment during beach landings. These actions sees that China may be preparing for a possible invasion of Taiwan.

However, the tension between Taiwan and China has a long history, centered around Taiwan's status. Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China , has its own government, military, and economy, effectively operating as an independent country. 

However, China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and insists on the ONE CHINA  policy, claiming there is only one China with Beijing as its capital.

This conflict dates back to the Chinese Civil War (1945 to 1949) when the  Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan after the Communist Party, led by Mao Zedong, took over mainland China. Since then, Beijing has applied diplomatic, economic, and military pressure to isolate Taiwan from the global community. In spite of these efforts, Taiwan carries on to defend its independence with strong support from its citizens.

China's Growing Military Activity

Lately, there has been more Chinese military activity near the region. This is part of a bigger trend where China has been steadily increasing the number of its military planes and ships nearby. Over the past few years, Chinese military planes have entered Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone  and sometimes crossed the middle line of the Taiwan Strait. China has said many times that it no longer sees this line as a boundary.

These actions are putting a lot of pressure on Taiwan’s military. Taiwan’s defense forces have to stay alert all the time, sending jets to block Chinese planes and keeping an eye on Chinese ships. While these steps are important to protect Taiwan’s airspace, they use up a lot of resources and put stress on both the military staff and their equipment.