China sends dozens of warplanes, ships toward Taiwan

China sent 39 aircraft and three warships on military drills toward Taiwan on Thursday in a show of force against the self-governing democratic island nation.

Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said officials detected the aircraft and vessels around 6 a.m. and were closely monitoring the military drills.

Thirty of the Chinese aircraft crossed over the median line of the Taiwan Strait, the ministry added in a Twitter post.

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the formal name for China’s forces, sent various warplanes in a southwest direction toward the southeastern region of the island before doubling back.

The PLA has recently conducted several drills around Taiwan, but Thursday’s military activity was the largest in several months.

In August, China conducted its largest military drill near Taiwan in decades after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) traveled to the island in a show of support.

China fired missiles flying over Taiwan that ended up near Japan and sent ships and aircraft over the median of the Taiwan Strait.

The U.S. has warned that China could launch an invasion of Taiwan in the near future, with a Pentagon report this month signaling a full-scale amphibious invasion is possible.

The latest National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed by Congress includes billions of dollars in security aid for Taiwan through 2027.