Taiwan detects 6 Chinese naval vessels operating around its territory

Taiwan’s ministry of national defence (MND) said on Wednesday that it detected the presence of six Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy vessels operating a around the island around 6am local time.As per the MND, armed forces assessed the activity and responded accordingly.In a post on X, the MND said, “6 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan detected up until 6 am (UTC+8) today. ROC Armed Forces have monitored the situation and responded. No flight path illustration is provided, as we did not detect PLA aircraft operating around Taiwan during this timeframe.”The ministry said no Chinese military aircraft were detected around Taiwan during the reporting period.The latest sighting follows a similar report issued by the MND on Tuesday, when it also detected six PLAN vessels operating near island’s waters.The repeated naval activity comes amid continued Chinese military operations around Taiwan, which Taipei has closely monitored in recent years.Taipei has already taken steps towards strengthening its defences against a potential Chinese blockade or invasion. According to a Reuters report published on June 4, Taiwan plans to expand its anti-ship missile arsenal to more than 1,800 missiles by early 2029.The stockpile will largely comprise US-supplied Harpoon missiles and domestically produced Hsiung Feng missiles. Analysts say the expanded arsenal could help establish a ‘kill zone’ in the Taiwan strait, enabling Taiwan to inflict significant losses on any invading force.

Separately, Taiwan’s first domestically built submarine recently departed from the port of Kaohsiung for another round of sea trials, according to Taiwanese media reports.