Global Courant 2023-04-11 12:47:29
Taipei, Taiwan — Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen condemned China’s military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, saying on Tuesday that China was not demonstrating the “responsible” behavior of a major Asian nation.
China’s three-day, full-scale exercises that ended Monday came in retaliation for Tsai’s meeting with Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy in California last week while visiting Taiwan’s official and unofficial allies.
“As president, I represent our country in the world, whether visiting allied countries or stopping over in the US and interacting with our international friends. Not only has this been going on for years, it is also the shared expectation of the Taiwanese people. Tsai said in a terse statement. “But China used this as a pretext to launch military exercises, creating instability in the Taiwan Strait and the region. This is not the attitude of a responsible great nation in this region.”
China views such gatherings as encouraging people to formally declare the island’s independence, a move the ruling Chinese Communist Party says would lead to war. The parties split in 1949 after a civil war and the government says the island is obliged to rejoin the mainland, by force if necessary.
The People’s Liberation Army issued a threat when it ended the exercises. “The theater’s troops are ready to fight at all times and can fight at any time to decisively destroy any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and attempts at foreign interference,” the PLA’s eastern command said in a statement. declaration.
In recent years, China has increased its military presence in the Taiwan Strait, with almost daily fighter jets and military exercises in the waters and skies near Taiwan.
Last August, after then-speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, China launched missile strikes against targets in the seas around Taiwan, while also sending warships and warplanes across the centerline of the Taiwan Strait. It also fired missiles over the island itself that landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, in a significant escalation.
The exercises this time focused more on airpower, with Taiwan reporting more than 200 sorties with Chinese warplanes. On Monday alone, Taiwan’s defense ministry tracked 91 sorties of Chinese warplanes.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, citing the PLA, said the exercises simulated sealing off the island and hitting key targets in waves.
Tsai also urged the public not to believe misinformation about Taiwan’s defenses, saying the military was fulfilling its duties and the public should cheer on the armed forces. “Our country’s soldiers and the national security team will stand firm in their posts to defend our country,” she said.
On Tuesday morning, Taiwan’s defense ministry said eight Chinese naval vessels were still in the waters around the island.
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