Taiwan condemns Chinese military drills around island as ‘unreasonable provocation’

A Taiwanese Air Force Mirage 2000 fighter jet prepares to land at an air force base in Hsinchu, Taiwan on October 14, 2024 amid Chinese military exercises around the island. I-Hwa Cheng/AFP/Getty Images
Published October 14, 2024

Hong Kong/Taipei CNN—Taiwan has condemned the latest round of Chinese military drills around the self-governing island as an “unreasonable provocation” after Beijing deployed warships and fighter jets in what it described as a “stern warning” to “separatist acts of Taiwan independence forces.”

The Chinese military’s Eastern Theater Command said Monday that the drills, involving joint operations of the army, navy, air force and rocket force, are being conducted in the Taiwan Strait – a narrow body of water separating the island from mainland China – as well as encircling Taiwan.

China’s military exercises around Taiwan, a democracy of 23 million people, have become increasingly frequent in recent years and have tended to coincide with events that have angered Beijing.

In August 2022, China launched a week of military drills following a visit to the island by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Similar drills in May came after the inauguration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing has denounced as a “dangerous separatist.” The latest exercises are code-named Joint Sword-2024B, implying it’s a follow-up to the drills five months ago.

Ahead of the drills, the Eastern Theater Command released a propaganda video entitled “prepared for battle” on its social media accounts.

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SOURCE: www.edition.cnn.com

RELATED: China encircles Taiwan in latest round of war games to warn ‘separatist forces’

Show of military power comes after Taiwanese president declares Beijing has no right to represent island which China regards as its territory

Published October 14, 2024

China launched a fresh round of war games around Taiwan, encircling the island and its outlying territories after president Lai Ching-te delivered a National Day address that apparently angered Beijing.

The People’s Liberation Army said on Monday that it was starting “joint assaults” involving its land, naval, air and rocket forces to practise “combat readiness patrols, blockades of key ports and areas, assaults on maritime and ground targets, and the seizure of comprehensive superiority”.

The PLA Eastern Theatre Command said the drills were a “stern warning to the separatist acts of ‘Taiwan Independence’ forces“.

The war games were widely anticipated and Taiwan was on high alert after Mr Lai vowed to resist “annexation” by Beijing during his address last week.

He said “China has no right to represent Taiwan“ and that he “will uphold the commitment to resist annexation or encroachment upon our sovereignty”.

 

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SOURCE: www.independent.co.uk