A month ahead of elections, Taiwan spots Chinese weather balloon in strait

Taiwan's defence ministry said on Friday that a Chinese weather balloon had crossed the Taiwan Strait median line on Thursday, about a month before Taiwan's presidential election. "Our initial understanding is that it was a sounding balloon," Taiwan Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng told reporters in parliament. Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, frequently accuses Beijing of seeking to exert military or economic pressure to sway its elections toward outcomes favourable to the Chinese government. The island will hold presidential and parliamentary elections on January 13. China has stepped up its military pressure against Taiwan over the past four…