| Date | 14 Feb 2024 |
| Tracker | China-Taiwan Tensions |
| Type | Other |
| Location |
Kinmen, Taiwan
24.45, 118.38 (approximate) |
A Chinese speedboat operating in prohibited waters off Kinmen capsized on February 14, 2024 during a high-speed pursuit by Taiwan's Coast Guard after refusing inspection; two of its four crew drowned. Beijing responded by rejecting Taiwan's prohibited-waters line around Kinmen and announcing regular China Coast Guard patrols in the area, including a 32-minute boarding of a Taiwanese tourist boat days later. Cross-strait negotiations over the deaths collapsed, and coast guard activity around Taiwan's outlying islands has remained elevated since.
| Series | That day | Prior 30-day avg | Week after vs before |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADIZ aircraft | 14 +419% | 2.7 | +325% (8 → 34) |
| Aircraft detected | 21 +108% | 10.1 | +223% (26 → 84) |
| PLAN ships | 6 +33% | 4.5 | +52% (29 → 44) |
| Date | Type | Incident |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Jan 2024 | Incursion | Chinese high-altitude balloon crosses over Taiwan island for first time amid overflight campaign |
| 23 May 2024 | Exercise | China holds Joint Sword-2024A punishment drills around Taiwan after Lai inauguration |
| 14 Oct 2024 | Exercise | China's Joint Sword-2024B drills set single-day record of 153 aircraft around Taiwan |
| 9 Dec 2024 | Exercise | China masses near-90-ship fleet around Taiwan in largest maritime deployment in decades |
Taiwan's Cabinet on September 3, 2026 approved a NT$145.7 billion (US$4.6 billion) defense allocation within a NT$607.63 billion supplementary budget, covering two classified programs, three uncrewed-systems programs and the Chiang Kung anti-ballistic missile system, pending a legislative vote.
President Lai Ching-te's government will ask the Legislative Yuan for NT$1.1225 trillion ($35.2 billion) in defense spending for 2027, the first Taiwanese military budget above NT$1 trillion and the first to exceed 3 percent of GDP.
Chinese military aircraft entering Taiwan's air defense identification zone fell 52 percent in the first seven months of 2026 compared with the same period of 2025, according to Taiwan's daily defense ministry reports — while PLA Navy vessel sightings dropped just 7 percent.