Legislators on the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee grilled ministry officials Monday after the armed forces reported six People’s Liberation Army aircraft crossing the Taiwan Strait median line within a 24-hour window ending at 6 a.m.
The ministry’s slide deck, shown in a closed portion of the hearing and summarized to reporters afterward, listed two J-16 fighter sorties, a Y-8 reconnaissance flight, and three drone tracks operating west of the line before turning north. Taiwan scrambled mission aircraft and activated shore-based missile systems according to standard procedures; no weapons were fired.
Questions on response time
Opposition lawmakers asked whether radar coverage gaps off the Penghu archipelago delayed classification of the drone tracks. Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei said fusion centers matched commercial satellite passes with military radars within three minutes, meeting internal benchmarks, but he agreed to deliver a classified timeline to committee chairs.
Lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party pressed for faster publication of daily sortie totals after Japan and the Philippines began posting similar tallies. Po said the ministry is testing bilingual dashboards that strip operational details but still show counts and aircraft types.
Diplomatic backdrop
The hearing coincided with fresh protests from Beijing over remarks Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made about Taiwan contingencies. Foreign Ministry officials who joined the session said Taipei welcomes Japan’s public discussion of regional security but will not comment on whether collective self-defense scenarios apply to specific cross-strait events.
Committee members asked whether extra budget lines for air-defense interceptors will clear the full legislature before year-end. Budget Office staff said a NT$27.7 billion supplemental package remains in cross-party negotiation after fiscal conservatives demanded offsetting cuts in civilian infrastructure programs.
What comes next
Po promised another classified briefing if sortie counts exceed five crossings in a single day again this week. The ministry will brief coast guard leaders on Wednesday about coordinating radio warnings when drone tracks approach offshore wind farms without entering restricted airspace.