Chinese Regime Amps Up Aggressive Rhetoric With Announcement of Military Drills in Taiwan Strait

A frigate launches chaff and flare during a drill at the sea near the Suao navy harbor in Yilan, eastern Taiwan, on April 13, 2018. The naval drills simulating an attack on the island took place soon after Beijing announced the Chinese regime will hold live-fire exercises in the Taiwan Straits on April 18. Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty Images

The Chinese regime has ratcheted up its aggressive rhetoric toward Taiwan in recent weeks, culminating in an announcement on April 12 that the Chinese military will hold live-fire military drills in the Taiwan Straits on April 18.

Taiwan has a separate political and economic system from mainland China and is, for the most part, a separate country, but Beijing views Taiwan as a region that will one day be reunited with the mainland.