China kicks off live drills near Taiwan in response to Tsai’s visit to US

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China has started the third day of live-free drills near Taiwan in response to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s recent visit to the United States, Al Jazeera reported.

Chinese fighter jets and warships conducted simulated strikes on Taiwan during the weekend. Beijing’s actions sparked protests by Taiwan. Beijing’s drills on Monday are expected to include live-fire exercises off of China’s Fujian province, located only about 80km (50 miles) south of Taiwan’s Matsu islands, as per Al Jazeera report.

Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence on Monday detected 70 Chinese military aircraft and 11 naval ships around Taiwan and its armed forces were monitoring the situation to respond to these activities.

In a tweet, Taiwan’s Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence said, “70 PLA aircraft and 11 PLAN vessels around Taiwan were detected by 6 a.m.(UTC+8) today. R.O.C. Armed Forces have monitored the situation and tasked CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and land-based missile systems to respond these activities.”

It further said, “35 of the detected aircraft(SU-30*8, J-11*4, J-10*6, J-16*8, TB-001 UCAV, Y-9EW, Y-8 ASW, J-15*4, CH-4 UCAV, KJ-500 AEW & C) had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s southwest and southeast ADIZ, flight paths as illustrated.”

China began three-day military drills around Taiwan called “Joint Sword” after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, as per the Al Jazeera report.

On Saturday, Senior Colonel Shi Yi, the spokesperson for the Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), said that the PLA Eastern Theater Command launched a “combat readiness security patrol” around Taiwan and carried out “Joint Sword” exercise, which will last from April 8-10, according to the statement.

Meanwhile, Taiwan lodged a protest against Chinese military drills around Taiwan, saying that the country would not yield to threats. In a statement, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence called Taiwan as their “homeland.”

Taking to its official Twitter handle, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence said, “#Taiwan is our homeland, and no matter where we go or what we encounter, she is always charming and beautiful. Every story on this land is etched in our memories. We, #ROCArmedForces, are fighting with all our heart to defend our homeland and to protect our home together.”

Tensions between China and Taiwan escalated after the then US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi travelled to the island in August last year. China raised objections to Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory. (BS)