China's Last Chance To Invade Taiwan

Note how close China is to Taiwan, so close the Taiwanese people living on their west coast can see Mainland China.

The Chinese Communist Party knows that Biden is on his way out, and Trump is on his way in. Thus, their time to invade Taiwan with impunity is limited. Beginning 6AM February 10th, Taiwan Time, and ending 24 hours later, a record six Chinese balloons flew across Taiwan.

In its daily report on Chinese military activities, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) said the six balloons were among eight that crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait during that 24-hour period.

The eight balloons were detected between 10:05 a.m. to 3:34 p.m. Saturday at altitudes ranging from 12,000 feet to 35,000 feet, the MND said. Of the six that actually crossed Taiwan’s land mass, some flew over northern Keelung City near Taipei, the capital city, and near a military base. Other balloons flew near central Taichung City,* according to the MND.

The MND did not comment on the type of balloons involved nor speculate why Beijing had sent them across the median line. The median line in the Taiwan Strait served for decades as a tacit border, but China's military has more freely sent aircraft warships and drones across it since former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.

Saturday and Sunday marked the first day and second day of the New Lunar Year of the Dragon, which is celebrated on both sides of the Taiwan Strait as well as by “oversea Chinese” communities across the globe.

DAILY BALLOONS

Beginning in early January, the CCP have been sending balloons daily to Taiwan as part of Chinese "gray zone" tactics in the lead-up to Taiwan’s presidential and legislative elections day on January 13th. This was meant to "harass and rattle the Taiwanese people" according to a Taiwanese military spokesman.

Taiwan's military has generally assessed the balloons as being for meteorological purposes, a conclusion drawn in part from its investigation of balloon debris found in February 2023 around Dongyin Islet. The MND said last year that similar equipment has been regularly detected in the air and sea around Taiwan, most often between December and February, because seasonal winds bring the balloons closer to Taiwan.

Speaking during a January 9th MND press event, Colonel Wang Chia-chun (王家駿), deputy head of MND's joint operations planning section, said shooting down the balloons would be "a waste of ammunition" and the exact response China wants from Taiwan. He added that Taiwan's standard military response was to issue alerts to the relevant authorities and to closely monitor the balloons' movements, particularly if they are found to be flying near more densely populated areas.

*This author and husband resided in Taichung, Taiwan in the early 70s.