"57 Chinese Balloons in January Alone, Targeting Taiwan Aviation... Psychological Warfare Suspected"

"To Inform That It Can Enter Taiwan Airspace"
China: "Hundreds of Balloons Exist Worldwide... Not a New Thing"

Objects suspected to be Chinese "reconnaissance balloons" reportedly violated Taiwan's airspace 57 times last month, the first month of the new year. Previously, Chinese authorities claimed that these balloons were not for reconnaissance but for civilian observation purposes.

Starting from the 1st of last month, Chinese balloons suspected of being used for reconnaissance were found daily in the skies near Taiwan. Up to six balloons were discovered in a single day.

US Department of Defense Releases Photo of Chinese Reconnaissance Balloon Taken by Pilot [Photo by Reuters/Yonhap News]

On the 4th, Taiwanese media such as Liberty Times reported that open-source intelligence researcher Damien Symon cited data released by Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense on the 31st of last month on X (formerly Twitter).

He stated, "Most of the Chinese balloons that entered Taiwan's airspace passed through the offshore airspace north of Taiwan, but some passed over the main island of Taiwan," adding, "Up to 5 to 6 Chinese balloons entered Taiwan's airspace in a single day."

Liberty Times interpreted this as China attempting to increase military pressure on Taiwan using means such as balloons. Su Tzu-yun, a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), a think tank under Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense, analyzed, "Unlike the large Chinese reconnaissance balloons that violated U.S. airspace last year, these balloons are small," and "Their onboard equipment is very limited, so their effectiveness for military reconnaissance or attacks is practically very limited."

Regarding this Chinese operation, researcher Su explained, "It is a form of psychological warfare intended to demonstrate that the Chinese military can enter not only the area around the Taiwan Strait but also the airspace over Taiwan."

President Joe Biden of the United States and President Xi Jinping of China
[Photo by EPA / Yonhap News]

Additionally, Ke Yongxun, a researcher at the Chinese Political and Military Operations Concept Research Institute under INDSR, said, "As the flight time of the Chinese balloons increases, they are gradually approaching the main island of Taiwan," and explained, "China is showing moves to establish a 'fifth service branch' through the creation of a 'stratospheric operations unit' in response to the establishment of the U.S. Space Force during former U.S. President Donald Trump's administration in 2019."

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense reported that from 6 a.m. the previous day, over a 24-hour period, seven Chinese military aircraft and four warships were detected in the airspace and waters surrounding Taiwan, with one military aircraft entering the median line of the Taiwan Strait and the southwestern Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), which is an extension of that line.

Flight path trajectory of the Chinese balloon that entered Taiwan airspace last January [Photo source: Damien Symon X capture]

Regarding this, Chen Bin-hua, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, China's government department responsible for Taiwan affairs, stated at a regular briefing on the 31st of last month, "The use of balloons for civilian purposes such as weather observation has been happening for a long time and is not a new matter." This is the first time the Chinese government has commented on the release of balloons near Taiwan.

The United States also urged China to clarify the purpose of sending reconnaissance balloons to Taiwan. John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the White House National Security Council (NSC), said last month, "We are aware that these surveillance balloons flew over Taiwan around the time of the Taiwan presidential election," but added, "The Chinese government needs to answer what the purpose was and what was done with these reconnaissance balloons." He further stated, "What is clear is that at that time, we insisted that the people of Taiwan should be able to hold free and fair elections without interference."

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