中国首次将军用无人机送入台湾空域，标志着对台军事施压进入新阶段。台湾国防部表示，一架中国侦察无人机于周六清晨在东沙岛（Pratas Island）空域飞行约4分钟，该岛位于台湾本岛以南约400公里处。无人机飞行高度超过防空武器射程，在台方通过国际无线电频率广播警告后离开。此前在2022年，台湾曾在金门附近击落一架中国民用无人机。

该事件发生在近期紧张局势升级的背景下。中国军方称此次飞行属于“合法正当”的训练活动。台湾方面则将其视为对防御体系的测试，并持续强化军备以应对潜在威胁。上月，在美国宣布向台湾提供价值110亿美元的军售方案后，中国人民解放军在台湾周边举行实弹演习，这是规模最大的军演之一。

同样在周六，中国军方还表示跟踪了一艘美国“约翰·芬”号导弹驱逐舰及一艘美方海洋调查船通过台湾海峡。美军通常在中国大规模军事行动后派遣舰艇穿越这一重要航道。整体来看，短时间、低烈度但高频率的军事动作，反映出中国正通过渐进式手段测试台湾与美国的应对边界。

China has sent a military drone into Taiwanese airspace for the first time, marking an escalation in pressure on the island. Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said a Chinese reconnaissance drone flew for about four minutes in the airspace over Pratas Island early Saturday, roughly 400 kilometers south of Taiwan’s main island. The drone operated above the range of air defense weapons and departed after Taiwan broadcast warnings on international radio frequencies. In 2022, Taiwan shot down a Chinese civilian drone near the offshore island of Kinmen.

The incident comes amid rising regional tensions. China’s military described the flight as “legitimate and lawful” training, while Taipei viewed it as a test of its defenses and continues to strengthen military preparedness. Last month, the People’s Liberation Army conducted live-fire drills around Taiwan following the US announcement of an $11 billion arms package for Taipei, one of the largest such deals to date.

On the same day, China’s military also said it tracked the USS John Finn, a guided-missile destroyer, and a US oceanographic survey vessel transiting the Taiwan Strait. The US routinely sends warships through the strait after major Chinese military maneuvers. Together, these brief but pointed actions signal a pattern of calibrated, low-duration operations aimed at probing Taiwan’s and Washington’s response thresholds.