The Chinese military on Friday continued its large-scale exercises in the sea and air spaces near Taiwan, a move that analysts say will only bring more international support to the democratic-governed island.
Footage released by China’s state media CCTV on Friday showed its military positioning missiles on the ground with soldiers in the midst of a countdown. Still, there was no sign of any missiles being fired.
The military’s drills surrounding the self-ruled Taiwan were to “test the ability to jointly seize power, launch joint attacks, and occupy key areas,” the spokesperson of the Chinese military’s Eastern Theater Command, Li Xi, said in an online statement on Friday.
Taiwanese marine and coast guard vessels, along with air and ground-based missile units, have been put on alert, particularly around the Taiwan-controlled island chains of Kinmen and Matsu, which are just off China’s coast and far from Taiwan’s main island.
According to the defense ministry in Taipei, 49 Chinese military aircraft, 19 navy vessels, and 7 coastguard ships were detected in areas surrounding Taiwan over the past 24 hours as of 6 a.m. local time on Friday.
Beijing’s extensive drills are not a surprise for analysts, who had expected the CCP to flex military muscles following President Lai Ching-te’s inauguration. Yu Tsung-Chi, a security expert who served as the dean of the National Defense University’s Fu Hsing Kang College in Taiwan, called the drill a “beginning” of military pressure on Taiwan’s new government.
The CCP’s strategy is to use the drill to “assess the reaction of Taiwan and the international community” so that it could “fine-tune its future actions,” Mr. Yu told The Epoch Times.
According to China’s state media, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) two-day drills were carried out around Taiwan—to the north, south, and east and in the Taiwan Strait—and the island’s offshore islands of Dongyin, Kinmen, Matsu, and Wuqiu.
Taiwan’s new president visited a marine base in the northern city of Taoyuan on Thursday. Without mentioning the Chinese drill, Mr. Lai told sailors and security officials that he would “stand on the front line” to defend Taiwan’s national security.
‘Pretext’ for Coercive Measures
The PLA cast the large drills as a “strong punishment” for the “independence forces” of Taiwan, and a “stern warning against the interference and provocation by external forces,” in an apparent reference to Washington.In a statement to The Epoch Times, the U.S. State Department said it has noted concerning reports of the Chinese military’s drills and that it was “monitoring very closely in close coordination with Taiwan.”
“We strongly urge Beijing to act with restraint and reiterate that the PRC should not use Taiwan’s political transition—part of a normal, routine democratic process—as a pretext or excuse for provocative or coercive measures,” a spokesperson of the State Department said via email, using the acronym of China’s official name, People’s Republic of China.
Beijing’s actions “risk escalation and erode longstanding norms that have maintained regional peace and stability for decades,” the spokesperson said.
The Pentagon issued a similar-worded statement, calling Beijing’s actions “reckless” and “risk escalation.”
“We are confident in our current force posture and operations in the region to ensure peace and stability and to meet our national security commitments,” the Defense Department’s spokesperson said in a statement to The Epoch Times on Friday.
The European Union called on all parties to exercise restraint and resolve tensions across the Taiwan Strait through dialogues.
“China’s military activities that started today around Taiwan increase cross-strait tensions,” a spokesperson of the European External Action Service said in a Thursday statement. “We oppose any unilateral actions that change the status quo by force or coercion.”
The United Nations also responded to the CCP’s action, saying it’s following the PLA’s drills closely.
“We urge the relevant parties to refrain from acts that could escalate tensions in the region,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a briefing on Thursday.
Lee Cheng-hsiu, a researcher at Taiwan’s National Policy Foundation, suggested the CCP’s military actions will only bring more support to Taiwan.
“If a peaceful solution is reached and accepted by the people of Taiwan, no country will intervene. However, if the CCP uses force to coerce Taiwan, the international community will not accept it,” Mr. Lee told the publication on Thursday.
The CCP will face a backlash, he said.
