HONG KONG, June 29. /TASS/. Taiwan's armed forces have detected 23 aircraft and five ships of the Chinese People's Liberation Army approaching the island over the past day.

According to the island’s defense ministry, 20 aircraft crossed the midline of the Taiwan Strait and entered the air defense identification zone in the northern, central, southwestern and eastern parts of the island.

Taiwan responded by engaging aircraft, ships, and land-based surface-to-air missile systems to track targets.

Taiwan has been governed by its local administration since 1949 when the Kuomintang’s remaining forces headed by Chiang Kai-shek were defeated in the Chinese Civil War and took refuge on the island. China regards the island as one of its provinces.