Hong Kong / Taipei
Cnn
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The Chinese army said on Tuesday that it had launched joint exercises involving its army, the Navy, the Air Force and the strength of the rockets around Taiwan as a “severe warning”, a few days after the American defense head Pete Hegseth promised to counter “the attack on China” during his first visit to Asia.
The Armed Forces of China “close” on the autonomous island from “multiple directions” in exercises and maneuvers of practice, including “assault on maritime and terrestrial targets” and “blockade on key areas and sea routes” to test the joint capacities of troop operations, said the command of social media.
“It is a severe warning and an energetic deterrence against the separatist forces of” the independence of Taiwan “, and it is a legitimate and necessary action to protect the sovereignty of China and national unity,” added the press release.
The command of the Eastern Théâtre has published a video of the APL participating in the exercises, showing Chinese navigation, the military aircraft that take off and the missiles are erected in the launch position.
China’s last military exercises come when Taiwan turns nervously while US President Donald Trump transforms Washington World Relations with his “America First” foreign policy, rejecting old decades to Europe and by pushing long -standing Asian allies and partners to pay more for American protection.
Meanwhile, Trump officials have repeatedly stressed the need for the United States to concentrate his attention and resources on the fight against China’s ambitions in Indo-Pacific.
For Taiwan, a democracy of some 23 million people, the exercises is the last recall of the threat which comes from its giant neighbor managed by the Communist Party, which claims island democracy as its own and has sworn to grasp it by force if necessary.
Taiwan officials condemned exercises as “reckless” and “irresponsible”.
“It came without justification, violates international laws and is completely unacceptable. Democracies must condemn China to be a troublemaker,” said Joseph Wu, secretary general of the Taiwan National Security Council, in an article on the social platform X.
Taiwan Minister of Defense, Wellington Koo said that his ministry was closely monitored the exercises and the movement of a Chinese aircraft carrier group in waters southeast of Taiwan, led by the first transporter of China built at the national level, Shandong.
Taiwan’s army has sent its own planes and ships and has deployed land missile systems to closely monitor the situation and respond appropriately, the Island’s Defense Ministry said in a press release on the Shandong aircraft carrier.
In Taiwan, government representatives and experts consider Chinese exercises as a signal to the Trump administration, where several key officials of the cabinet are Bellicians on China, in particular Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
During his first trip to Asia as US Secretary for Defense last week, Hegseth promised to improve the American military alliance with the Philippines to “restore deterrence” to counter “the aggression of China” in the Indo-Pacific region, and described Japan an “essential partner to dissuade the Communist Chinese military aggression”, including through the Taiwan Strait.
An internal analysis of the Taiwan government has cited HegSeth’s visit as “external reasons” of the last exercises in China.
“They reaffirmed the importance of security and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and have confirmed that the United States transferred its security objective in the Indo-Pacific region.
“Faced with future sales talks and the United States and the measures expected against China, Beijing has opted for restraint to avoid actions that could be considered directly in the United States. Taiwan serves as a perfect pretext, encouraging Beijing to launch these military exercises immediately after the American defense secretary left Asia,” added the analysis.
SU Tzu-Yun, director of the Institute for National Defense Security Research in Taiwan, said that unlike the two military exercises “Sword-2024” joint that China did last year, the last years were “surprised” on Tuesday morning.
“I think Beijing is trying to show his signal in Washington,” said Su.
On Tuesday, the Chinese Coast Guard said it has also launched “law application patrols” in the waters surrounding Taiwan, performing exercises, including the interception and detention of “unjustified ships”.
The Chinese army has accelerated regular patrols as well as military exercises in the air and waters around Taiwan, part of a broader assertion of the territorial affirmations of China under the Chinese chief Xi Jinping.
Major exercises often serve as a means of Beijing to express dissatisfaction with the island – as well as to better understand how Taiwan monitors and reacts to military pressure from China.
The Chinese army has launched exercises in recent years surrounding Taiwan and simulating a blockade from the island – one of the strategies which, according to experts, could be used if Beijing finally decides to move to take control using military power.
Zhang Chi, professor at the APL National Defense University in Beijing, said Tuesday exercises did not have a specific code name because such military exercises are increasingly common.
“This largely indicates that the exercises we see today have become a new standard for the APL and command of the Oriental theater-it is a routine for them,” he told China CCTV state broadcaster.
Beijing has repeatedly accused Taiwan leaders of looking for “independence” and considers the president of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, as a “separatist”, launching large-scale exercises a few days after the inauguration of Lai last year.
On Tuesday, the order of the oriental theater of the APL published a series of propaganda videos after having announced the last exercises, including one which depicts Lai as a green cartoon bug and calls it a “parasite” digging the island.
Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Chinese Taiwan Business Office, described the military exercises “a resolute warning to the creeping provocations of the LAI Ching-Te administration for” independence “.
Lai, who has long been a champion of Taiwan’s sovereignty, has called on China to stop its intimidation, but it also frequently talked about the importance of maintaining “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait”.
The polls systematically show the people of Taiwan, a prosperous and frank democracy, not wishing to be governed by China, a single single party.
The latest exercises follow a series of incidents that accelerated tensions through the Taiwan Strait, including Taipei detention at the end of February of a cargo cargo, he was investigating for having pretended to cut an underwater internet cable during the second incident of this type during a period of a month.
Last month, Lai called China as “foreign hostile force” and increased national security measures to combat Chinese espionage and infiltration. A few days later, Taiwan expelled a Chinese influencer for having argued a military control of island democracy by Beijing.
Taiwan has long been considered a potential flash point that could trigger a hot conflict between China and the United States.
The United States has unofficial relations with Taipei and is bound by law to provide Taiwan with weapons for his defense. Washington has long maintained a policy of strategic ambiguity on the question of whether it came to the defense of Taiwan in the event of a foray into China.
This story has been updated with additional information.
