China’s military drills in Taiwan waters send a warning to US
By Neil Connor in Beijing and Nicola Smith in Taipei CHINA has issued a warning against attempts to “split” its territory as it began live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait today.
The military manoeuvres are being seen by observers as a clear message of disapproval against growing support for the self-ruled island from the US.
The drills, the first to be carried out in the sensitive waters since the 2015 election in Taiwan, are also viewed as a warning against what Beijing sees as growing moves towards independence from the Taipei government.
Liu Jieyi, the head of the Beijingbased Taiwan Affairs Bureau, said the drills were being carried out to “safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the motherland” and “to prevent any words or deeds that attempt to split any territory away from the motherland”.
Politicians in Taipei, accusing Beijing of “amplified” rhetoric about the live-fire drills, said they were aimed at terrorising the Taiwanese people and warned against “unnecessary interpretations” of the exercises.
Lo Chih-cheng, a legislator from Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party and a member of the parliament’s national defence committee, said that the exercises would be routine and not very large, reported the Taipei Times.
Tensions between Beijing and Taipei have escalated in recent weeks over increasing US involvement in Taiwan.
Washington last month signed the Taiwan Travel Act, allowing more official visits between the US and Taipei.
It also agreed to help Taipei build its own submarines, a move that China’s media said made war “more probable”.