Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu Claims That China’s Drills Show That They Are Getting Ready For An Invasion

Following days of massive Chinese military games, Taiwan’s top diplomat accused Beijing of plotting an invasion of the island as the island performed an artillery drill simulating a defence against an attack.

Last week, in a furious response to a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the highest-ranking American official to visit the autonomous island in decades, China staged its largest-ever air and naval exercises surrounding Taiwan.

Taiwan always fears invasion from China, which sees Taiwan’s neighbour as part of its territory that should one day be taken, by force if necessary.

Using Pelosi’s visit as justification for military action, Joseph Wu claimed during a news conference in Taipei on Tuesday. “China has exploited the drills and its military playbook to prepare for the invasion of Taiwan.”

He claimed that China’s true goal was to change the current situation in the Taiwan Strait and the surrounding area.

According to Lou Woei-jye, spokesman for Taiwan’s Eighth Army Corps, Taipei’s practise began in the southern county of Pingtung shortly after 00:40 GMT with the launching of target flares and artillery, and it ended just under an hour later at 01:30 GMT.

The road leading to Kenting, a well-known beach location, was concealed from view by howitzers soldiers were firing from.

The army stated that hundreds of soldiers and roughly 40 howitzers were deployed during the drills, which also took place on Thursday.

Lou informed AFP on Monday that the exercises had been planned in advance and were not in response to China’s manoeuvres.

The island regularly conducts military exercises simulating defence against a Chinese invasion, and last month as part of its major yearly drills, the island practised repelling attacks from the sea in a “combined intercepting operation.”

After China expanded its own combined sea and air operations surrounding Taiwan on Monday, the anti-landing exercises were conducted, although Washington said it did not anticipate an uptick in tensions from Beijing.

“I’m not worried, but I’m anxious about how much they’re moving. However, I don’t believe they’ll go beyond what they’ve already done “At the Dover Air Force Base, Biden spoke to reporters.

China has not said if Tuesday’s drills in the Taiwan Strait would go on as planned.

Taiwan’s foreign minister Joseph Wu, however, criticised Beijing for expanding its military drills surrounding the island and charged that they were attempting to dominate the Taiwan Strait and the waters of the larger Asia-Pacific area.

To lower public morale in Taiwan, it is engaging in extensive military drills, missile launches, cyberattacks, a disinformation campaign, and economic coercion “said he.

Following Pelosi’s visit, Wu continued to praise Western allies, particularly the US, for challenging China.

Additionally, he added, “it sends a strong signal to the globe that democracy will not submit to the pressure of dictatorship.”

‘NOT WORRIED’

Taiwan has stated that during Beijing’s drills, no Chinese aeroplanes or ships entered its territorial seas, which are within 12 nautical miles of land.

However, to demonstrate how close it had come to Taiwan’s coasts, the Chinese military last week published a video of an air force pilot shooting the island’s shoreline and mountains from his cockpit.

Since drills started last week, its ships and aircraft have also frequently breached the median line, an unofficial boundary between China and Taiwan that the latter does not recognise.

According to Chinese official media, during the exercises last week, ballistic missiles were fired over the capital of Taiwan, Taipei.

The Chinese military provided additional information on the anti-submarine drills it had carried out around the island the previous day on Tuesday.

The exercises, according to the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater command, were designed to improve the capacity of air and sea forces to cooperate while pursuing submarines.

According to the report, a warship, fighter jets, helicopters, and maritime patrol aircraft trained on finding and striking targets in the waters off Taiwan.

Outrage has been expressed in the United States and other democracies at the size and ferocity of China’s drills, as well as its exit from important climate and defence negotiations.

According to experts, the drills have also demonstrated how an increasingly confident Chinese military could impose a torturous siege on the island.

Beijing, though, described its actions as “strong, forceful, and appropriate” in response to American provocation on Monday.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated at a regular briefing that “(We) are merely issuing a warning to the offenders” and pledged that China would “firmly crush the Taiwan authorities’ fantasy of attaining independence through the US.”

“We implore the US to ponder seriously and amend its errors right away.”