China has deployed naval ships and military aircraft in a display of power around Taiwan to humiliate the self-governing region further as a series of military operations commenced. Starting from Thursday, the mainland Chinese aircraft swooped over Taiwan for two days to conduct the exercises, which are part of the intensification of the threat by Beijing to take over Taiwan.
The People’s Liberation Army of China stated in a statement that the sailors planning and conducting the equipment were aircraft and ships that would encircle the Island to inspect its war-fighting capacities.
Taiwan has since called up its air, ground, and sea forces, asserting that it would not allow the “darkness of communism to triumph” by giving up “the light of freedom”.
Washington claims that fresh military movements have emerged on the back of Lai Ching-te’s inauguration ceremonies as Taiwan’s new president. In his inaugural address, Lai celebrated what he called the ‘glorious’ democratic stratum; that same address saw him commit to falling on the enhancement of Taiwan’s defense front against threats posed by China.
Beijing condemned Lai’s speech as a “secessionist confession” and threatened to punish those who supported independence. Chinese state media said it was a “strong deterrent” against Taiwan independence, with commentary saying the “weapon aimed at ‘Taiwan independence’ to kill ‘independence’ is already in place.”
Experts believe that the operations are also designed to practice embargoes against Taiwan and to ‘choke’ the strategically important Kaohsiung port, ‘seriously disrupt’ its overseas commerce. Taiwan and China have been involved in a series of diplomatic and military standoffs over the years, sometimes hinting at the possibility of an invasion of Taiwan by China.
The US has expressed concern with the latest military drills but has not been caught off guard by the exercise, which it said was “concerning” but expected, especially given the fact that China switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979. The dynamics of cross-strait relations remain one of the foundations of major geopolitical concerns for both parties.
