The World Briefly

April 11, 2023

What’s Mine

Taiwan

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China ended three days of military drills around Taiwan on Monday, the latest show of force by Beijing against the self-governing island it claims as part of its territory, Reuters reported.

Beijing ordered the drills over the weekend in response to a meeting between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles.

China had previously criticized the meeting as an act of “US-Taiwan collusion,” and warned that Beijing would “take resolute and vigorous measures to defend its national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the New York Times noted.

On Monday, Chinese officials and state media said the military had “successfully completed” the exercises and “comprehensively tested” the capabilities of multiple units under actual combat conditions.

The Eastern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army hailed the exercises, noting that Chinese troops are “ready to fight all the time and can fight at any time, resolutely crushing any form of Taiwan independence separatism and foreign interference.”

The recent drills saw the use of warships and aircraft, including nuclear-capable H-6 bombers armed with live missiles, and the Shangdong aircraft carrier.

Taiwan’s defense ministry reported the presence of 59 military aircraft and 11 ships around the island. The Taiwanese military said it would calmly respond to China’s drills and not provoke conflict.

Even so, the three-day exercises prompted concern and condemnation from Taipei and its allies.

China has never renounced the use of force to seize control of the democratically-ruled island and has long held Taiwan as part of its territory, a claim that Taipei has strongly disputed.

This story originally appeared in the April 11, 2023 newsletter, The Spiral.