Taiwan Military Fires First Live Warning Shots at Chinese Drone... Military Tensions Rise

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] Military tensions between Taiwan and China are escalating as the Taiwanese military revealed that it fired live warning shots for the first time at a Chinese unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) that intruded into its outpost.

According to Taiwan Central News Agency (CNA) on the 31st, the Kinmen Defense Command of the Taiwanese military stated that "when a drone entered the maritime control zone airspace over the Erluan area at 5:59 p.m. on the 30th (local time), live defensive fire was conducted, and the drone flew toward Xiamen around 6 p.m." This marks the first time the Taiwanese military has fired live warning shots at a Chinese drone intrusion.

Prior to this warning shot, three civilian drones were detected by the Taiwanese military around Kinmen's surrounding islands such as Dadan, Erluan, and Sihwei in the afternoon. When the Taiwanese military fired signal flares, the drones flew toward Xiamen.

CNA reported that this response followed Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's directive that afternoon to "take strong measures in a timely manner to suppress Chinese Communist Party drones." This is interpreted as a tough measure to dispel controversies that arose inside and outside Taiwan after a video leaked showing a Taiwanese soldier throwing stones at a Chinese drone.

On the 25th, a video was posted on Bilibili, China's version of YouTube, showing a Taiwanese soldier stationed at a border outpost on Erluan Island, 4.5 km from Xiamen City, throwing stones at a Chinese drone that appeared overhead in an attempt to drive it away. This led to criticism in Taiwan questioning why firearms were not used to shoot down the Chinese drone.

As Taiwan adopts tougher measures than before, military tensions between the two sides are expected to further escalate. Since U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, military tensions have rapidly increased, and the number of Chinese drones flying over Kinmen Island and its affiliated islets has surged. Since the 2nd, Chinese drones have appeared 23 times.

Taiwan views the sharp increase in Chinese drone appearances as part of China's "gray zone tactics" and remains vigilant. Gray zone tactics refer to strategies that conceal a country's intentions while continuously conducting military provocations to undermine the opponent's vigilance. The Taiwanese military is reportedly concerned that sensitive frontline areas could inadvertently provide China with a pretext for attack and is struggling to find appropriate countermeasures.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.