Balloons originating in China were detected in the skies around Taiwan for the second time this month, according to data published on Monday by the Defense Ministry in Taipei.
Two Chinese craft launched on Sunday crossed the center line of the Taiwan Strait 110 nautical miles northwest of Keelung, a port city in northern Taiwan, and "headed east," Taipei said. Both were traveling at an altitude of around 27,000 feet and "disappeared" at 9:36 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. local time, respectively.
Beijing's use of high-altitude balloons and dirigible airships, especially for intelligence-gathering purposes, was the subject of intense study earlier this year after one of them—said to be carrying sophisticated equipment—traversed the continental United States before being shot down by a U.S. Air Force fighter jet in February.
It emerged that counties around the world, but in particular China's immediate neighbors, had detected similar floating white orbs in their airspace, too. The Pentagon later assessed that Beijing suspended its otherwise crude balloon program following the embarrassing debacle, which Chinese officials insisted had involved a civilian weather monitoring device.
A map released by Taiwan's Defense Ministry showed the approximate flight paths of the two balloons, which appeared to be headed for the East China Sea toward Japan.
The ministry assessed that the latest craft were likely weather balloons, a spokesperson told Newsweek.
Six Chinese military aircraft and two warships were also operating around Taiwan in the 24 hours to 6 a.m. local time December 18, the ministry's statement said.
Taipei first disclosed a Chinese balloon's flight path as part of its daily military maps earlier this month, but it was not the first time its forces had spotted one of the craft nearby.
"We began disclosing the detection of balloons in an effort to convey to the public what we know," a spokesperson said, noting that all departments in the ministry had been advised to release relevant information in the interest of transparency.
"This is necessary because if another organization or country publicizes it, we could be accused of withholding information," the spokesperson said.
February's spy balloon incident drew national attention in the U.S. after the device became visible to the naked eye.
The diplomatic fallout that ensued resulted in the postponement of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to China that month.
However, both Washington and Beijing were keen to move on from the incident given a stated desire to restart dialogue. The balloon and its contents were recovered from the Atlantic and studied by the FBI, but a long-awaited report has yet to surface.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping eventually met in November in San Francisco for their first in-person summit in a year. And senior defense officials from both capitals met in the weeks prior.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
John Feng is Newsweek's contributing editor for Asia based in Taichung, Taiwan. His focus is on East Asian politics. He ... Read more
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