Taipei [Taiwan], May 13 (ANI): Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) said it detected 31 Chinese military aircraft, seven naval vessels, and one official ship operating around the island by 6 am (UTC+8) on Tuesday.

Of the 31 aircraft, 30 crossed the Taiwan Strait's median line and entered the northern and southwestern parts of Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

Sharing a post on X, MND wrote, '31 sorties of PLA aircraft, 7 PLAN vessels, and 1 official ship operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 30 out of 31 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern ADIZ.'

https://x.com/MoNDefense/status/1922094757355872514

Meanwhile, the MND also said that China launched satellites from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center (XSLC) at 2:09 am (UTC+8) today.

In another post, MND wrote, 'At 02:09 (UTC+8) today, China launched satellites from #XSLC, with the flight path over central Taiwan toward the Western Pacific. The altitude is beyond the atmosphere, posing no threat. #ROCArmedForces monitored the process and remain ready to respond accordingly.'

https://x.com/MoNDefense/status/1922094760682009025

On Monday, MND detected 36 Chinese military aircraft and eight naval vessels, along with two official ships, around Taiwan by 6 a.m. (UTC+8). Of the aircraft, 17 crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered the island's northern, central, and southwestern ADIZ.

On Sunday, Taiwan detected five sorties of Chinese aircraft, nine Chinese naval vessels, and one official ship operating around its territory.

Taiwan's Council of Indigenous Peoples has criticised a former legislator for echoing 'United Front' slogans during an event in China, asserting that Taiwan's indigenous peoples are not 'descendants of the Yellow Emperor,' Taipei Times reported.

The council emphasised that any exchanges involving indigenous communities must be based on mutual respect and equality, without promoting political agendas.

The controversy centres around former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator and National Dong Hwa University professor Yosi Takun, who recently attended an event hosted by China's Yunnan Minzu University. During the event, a banner proclaiming 'Both sides of the Strait share the same ancestry, Zhonghua spirit, and are one big family' was prominently displayed.

Taiwan's Council of Indigenous Peoples rejected this narrative, reaffirming that Taiwan's indigenous peoples are of Austronesian descent, not of Chinese lineage.

'Taiwan's indigenous peoples are not descendants of the Yellow Emperor,' the council declared, adding that these communities are culturally and linguistically linked to the Austronesian family, not the Sino-Tibetan language family. The council criticised Yosi's remarks at the event, where he described minority cultures as an 'important part of Chinese civilisation.' (ANI)