Taiwan Detects More Chinese Balloons Near Its Territory

It’s the second time this month Taiwan has reported Chinese balloons flying near the island.

A view of the South China Sea between the city of Xiamen in China, in the far distance, and the islands of Taiwan's Kinmen County in the foreground, home to around 140,000 people, on Feb. 2, 2021. An Rong Xu/Getty Images

Two Chinese weather balloons flew across the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Dec. 17, Taiwan’s defense ministry said, as the regime in Beijing ratchets up pressure on the self-ruled island ahead of next month’s election.

The balloons were detected at 9:03 a.m. and 2:43 p.m. local time, respectively, after crossing the strait’s median line, the defense ministry said in a statement on social media. They continued to travel toward the east, before disappearing at 9:36 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. local time, respectively, it added.