A Chinese aircraft carrier battle group moved into position near Taiwan on Tuesday, as part of the communist regime’s large-scale military drills in the waters and airspace around the island.
A spokesperson for the Chinese military said the joint exercises by the navy, air ground and rocket forces were intended as a “severe warning and forceful containment against Taiwan independence.”
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence said 19 Chinese navy vessels had been spotted in the waters surrounding the island in a 24-hour period from 6 a.m. Monday.
It said it had been tracking the aircraft carrier Shandong since Saturday, and said the carrier group had entered into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone.
Taiwan’s Defense Minister Wellington Koo said, “I want to say these actions amply reflect [China’s] destruction of regional peace and stability.”
Koo said Taiwan had set up a central response group to monitor the latest Chinese exercises.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said, in a statement issued on Tuesday claimed that Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te was “stirring up anti-China sentiments,” with his recent 17-point strategy.
“We will not tolerate or condone this in any way and must resolutely counter and severely punish these actions,” the statement added.
The 17-point strategy aimed at boosting Taiwan’s national security was put forward by Lai on March 13.
The strategy included plans to move espionage trials to military courts and tighten immigration rules for Chinese citizens applying for permanent residency.
Referring to Taiwanese citizens who had drawn matters to his attention, he said, “They have noticed cases in which members of the military, both active-duty and retired, have been bought out by China, sold intelligence, or even organized armed forces with plans to harm their own nation and its citizens.”
“They have noticed cases in which entertainers willingly followed instructions from Beijing to claim that their country is not a country, all for the sake of personal career interests,” added Lai.
In Oct. 2023, a retired air force colonel, Liu Sheng-shu, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for spying for China between 2013 to 2021.
Last month a Chinese TikTok influencer, Liu Zhenya, had her residency permit revoked.
She runs a TikTok channel with nearly half a million subscribers, that publishes content pushing for mainland China’s “unification” with Taiwan.
Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is the continuation of an exiled power that ruled mainland China before the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) took control in 1949. The CCP has never ruled Taiwan. It has stated that it would endeavor to absorb Taiwan by peaceful means but has repeatedly threatened to annex the self-ruled island by force.
After winning the election, Lai emphasized he would maintain the status quo across the Taiwan Strait.
“As long as there is dignity and parity between two sides of the strait, Taiwan is very willing to engage in dialogues with China,” he said at the time.
China often sends ships and planes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, probing the island’s defenses and sending an intimidating message to the politicians in Taipei.
China’s Coast Guard spokesman, Zhu Anqing, said it was conducting a “law enforcement patrol” around Taiwan on Tuesday.
Between March 17 and March 21, Taiwan carried out an “immediate combat response” drill, in response to a surge in the number of drones and ships sent toward the island by the CCP.
