By Focus and AFP | 2025-02-07

Taiwan said it detected six Chinese balloons off the island as Beijing continues to escalate military pressure and assert its territorial claim.

The six balloons were spotted in the 24 hours to 6am on Friday (February 7), Taiwan's Defense Ministry said, giving one of its highest daily tallies of the devices.

Along with the balloons, nine Chinese military aircraft, six warships and two official ships were detected near Taiwan over the same period.

The balloons were spotted at an altitude of 4,877 to 6,096 meters, and one of them directly flew over the island, according to an illustration released by the defense ministry.

Balloon sightings surge

While Taiwan calls itself a sovereign nation, China claims the island and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.

In recent years, China has ramped up the deployment of fighter jets and warships around the self-ruled island and sought to erase Taiwan from the international stage by poaching its diplomatic allies and blocking it from global forums.

Chinese balloons have been regularly spotted over waters near Taiwan in the past few months, but Friday's figure is one of the highest recorded, according to an AFP tally of the military data.

Last year, Taiwan detected a record of eight Chinese balloons less than a month after the presidential elections won by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's Lai Ching-te.

In November, Taiwan's military deployed aircraft, ships and air defense missile systems in a drill after its defense ministry reported the detection of two Chinese balloons near the island.

Beijing regularly deploys fighter jets, drones and warships and occasionally balloons around Taiwan as it keeps up military pressure.

Beijing regards Lai as a "separatist" and has staged several rounds of major military exercises since he came to power last May.

Similar Chinese tactics in Philippines

Taiwan has described the Chinese balloons as a form of "grey zone" harassment -- a tactic that falls short of an act of war but can exhaust Taipei's armed forces.

Balloons from China became a politically fraught topic in early 2023 when the United States shot down what it called a spy balloon.

The huge balloon, which carried a large payload of electronics, flew over sensitive US military installations and prompted concerns Beijing was scooping up vital intelligence.

Beijing has said it was a civilian airship blown off-course.

Taipei accuses Beijing of ramping up grey zone harassment by sending warplanes and naval vessels around Taiwan on a nearly daily basis.

In October, Taiwan said it detected a record 153 Chinese military aircraft in a 25-hour period after Beijing held large-scale drills which it said served as a "stern warning" to "Taiwan independence forces."

The Philippines also has reported attempts recently by China to surveil its territory and military activities, adding to the concerns over the potential security threats posed by Beijing in the region.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos on January 31 said he was "very disturbed" by the surveillance of the country's military, following a series of arrests of alleged Chinese spies.

Drone espionage against Philippines

Philippine security officials one day earlier said they took into custody five Chinese spies, following the arrest of a compatriot for espionage earlier that month. The suspects are accused of using a drone and camera to film various military activities near the disputed Spratly islands.

The arrests came as confrontations between the two Asian neighbors over contested reefs and waters in the strategic South China Sea have escalated in recent months.

Two men were arrested at Manila airport earlier in January after they allegedly conducted surveillance on Philippine navy and other government vessels supplying military garrisons in the disputed Spratly archipelago.

The men, using a drone and high-resolution solar-powered camera, recorded activities at a naval base, a coast guard station, an air base and a dockyard in Palawan province, the closest major landmass to the Spratlys, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) director Jaime Santiago told a news conference.

In addition, Filipino police said a suspected Chinese submarine drone was recovered in waters off the central Philippines in late December.