China Sends Record Number of Warplanes Across Key Boundary Line With Taiwan

China sent a record number of warplanes across a U.S.-drawn boundary in the Taiwan Strait—a move that comes as the new president of the archipelago mulls a trip that may include a stop in America.

Some 56 aircraft crossed the so-called median line as of early Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense in Taipei said on the X social media site. Taiwanese aircraft, naval vessels and missile systems were used “in response” to the flights by the People’s Liberation Army, the military added, without providing details on what that entailed.

The archipelago’s armed forces have “a close grasp of the dynamics of the sea and airspace surrounding the Taiwan Strait, including the actions of the PLA aircraft and ships,” ministry spokesperson Sun Li-fang told reporters later in the day.