China’s Airspace Incursion Triggers Taiwan’s Air Defense Response

YILAN, TAIWAN - MAY 24: Taiwanese Navy personnel manoeuvre around a Newport-class tank landing ship on May 24, 2023, in Yilan, Taiwan. The Taiwanese military conducts amphibious landings to simulate People's Liberation Army (PLA) forces landing on three beaches in Yilan County. The three beaches are identified by experts as red beaches which are vulnerable to a potential invasion by PLA. The simulations aim to increase tactical coordination between different forces and to discover weaknesses in defense plans. (Photo by Annabelle Chih/Getty Images)

On Thursday, 37 Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defense zone, with some subsequently flying into the western Pacific, prompting the island nation to activate its air defense systems.

Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. alighting from a HIMARS light multiple rocket launcher at a naval base, as he watches the Combined Joint Littoral Live Fire Exercise as part of the US-Philippines Balikatan Exercises, amid rising tensions with China, in San Miguel, Zambales, The Philippines, on 28 April 2023. The US-Philippines Balikatan military exercises came following China’s increasing military presence near Taiwan and the South-China Sea. (Photo by Ceng Shou Yi/NurPhoto via Getty Images)