Activating China its military defense ministry has begun maneuvers surrounding Taiwan as a “stern warning” against what it describes as cooperation between “separatists and foreign forces,” just days after the island’s vice president visited the US.
MILIIn this photo released by the Taiwan Presidential Office, Taiwan’s Vice President William Lai speaks at an event to welcome him to New York on Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. The Chinese military launched drills around Taiwan on Saturday, Aug. 19 as a “stern warning” over what it called collusion between “separatists and foreign forces,” its defense ministry said, days after the island’s vice president stopped over in the United States (Source: The Tribune-Democrat)
China Activating Its Military Defense Involved the Coordination of Vessels and Planes
Recently, Taiwanese Vice President William Lai visited San Francisco and New York City to strengthen ties with his nation’s final South American diplomatic ally. The Communist Party in power on the Chinese mainland believes democratic Taiwan is part of its territory and denies having any authority to manage international affairs.
According to a brief statement from China’s Eastern Theater Command, the military exercises involved the coordination of vessels and planes as well as their ability to seize control of air and sea sectors. It was also testing the forces’ actual combat capabilities, according to Shi Yi. A warning to pro-independence forces and foreign forces, he said, the exercises in northern and southwestern Taiwanese waters and airspace were conducted.
It posted a video of previous military training on Facebook and claimed it showed the Chinese military’s belligerent outlook. In 1949, when a civil war brought the Communist Party to power on the mainland, China and Taiwan were officially separated. Even though Taiwan has never been a part of the PRC, Beijing treats the island as if it were a province that had broken away and must be retaken by force.
Lai was Criticized as “Troublemaker”
An anonymous official in China’s Taiwan Work Office, according to the official Xinhua news agency, strongly criticized what it described as the further coordination between Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party and the US on Saturday, calling it a “new provocative move.” According to reports, the official mentioned Lai’s time in the United States, an interview he gave to Bloomberg, and a meeting he had with American authorities while in Paraguay. According to the official, Lai utilized “Taiwan independence” rhetoric during the interview.
According to the story, the official also called Lai a “troublemaker who will push Taiwan to the dangerous brink of war” and accused him of selling out Taiwan’s interests for political gain. In the upcoming presidential election in January 2024, Lai will be representing his party. In a Facebook post, Taiwanese Presidential Office spokesman Olivia Lin accused China of attempting to influence its election by instilling fear and condemned the provocation. She stated that the international community has repeatedly emphasized the significance of keeping peace in the Taiwan Strait and has asked China to refrain from such actions. Taiwan’s foreign minister, Joseph Wu, said on the X platform that China “has made it clear that it wants to shape” the island’s national election, attaching the command’s statement and the Xinhua report. “It’s up to our citizens to decide, not the bully next door,” he wrote.
In reaction to Nancy Pelosi, a former speaker of the US House of Representatives, visiting Taiwan in August, China carried out its largest military defense in recent years. In a significant escalation, it fired missiles over the island, interrupting trade routes in the Taiwan Strait and compelling aircraft to change course. In response to President Tsai Ing-wen’s meeting with current US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in April, Chinese soldiers conducted large-scale battle preparedness drills in the air and waters surrounding Taiwan.
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