An infuriated Beijing launched “punitive” drills around Taiwan on Thursday, sending in heavily armed fighter jets to carry out mock attacks in response to “acts of separatism” as state media denounced newly appointed President Lai Ching-te.
The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command conducted joint military drills involving the army, navy, air force and rocket force, with Beijing dispatching dozens of fighter jets equipped with live ammunition, state media reported.
The two-day operation will see jets and warships carry out mock attacks on high-value military targets.
“This is a strong punishment for the Taiwanese Independence Army’s separatist acts, and also a stern warning against interference and provocation by external forces,” the Chinese military said.
The event is taking place in the Taiwan Strait and around Taiwan-administered islands adjacent to China’s coast.
The exercise, dubbed “Joint Sword-2024A”, marks the first time China has conducted such military drills around the islands of Kinmen, Matsu, Wuqiu and Dongyin, and the Chinese military said the operation was intended to test “joint practical combat capabilities”.
The operation’s name, tagged with an “A,” suggests it could be one of several carried out by the Chinese government this year in opposition to Lai’s power grab.
Lai, who is hated by Beijing as a “separatist” because he rejects Beijing’s notion that Taiwan is Chinese territory, was inaugurated on Monday with a speech touting the nation’s sovereignty.
In his speech, Li called on China to stop threatening Taiwan and said the two sides of the strait were “not dependent on each other,” a blow to Beijing.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called Taiwan’s President Lai Ming a “shameful character” after Beijing has repeatedly rejected her offers of talks between the two countries.
China’s state-run Central Television (CCTV) called Li’s inaugural speech “extremely harmful” and defended China’s countermeasures as “just, legal and necessary.”
Taiwan’s defense ministry condemned the “punitive drill” as the military dispatched troops to areas around the island, and said air defense forces and land-based missile units were also pursuing the targets.
“The launch of these military exercises not only does not contribute to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, but also highlights (China’s) militaristic mindset,” the defence ministry said.
The Ministry of Defense maintained that it was confident that China could defend its territory even if the exercises were repurposed.
Lai’s office also accused China of threatening Taiwan’s democratic freedoms and regional peace with “unilateral military provocations,” but the president said his country’s military could ensure security.
China has conducted daily military operations near Taiwan for the past four years, and Beijing last conducted such large-scale military exercises in 2023 and 2022.
In the latter case, China began live-fire military exercises around Taiwan shortly after a visit by former U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
A senior Taiwanese official familiar with the matter said the war games were less about a dramatic escalation and more about China “giving a name” to its military activities around Taiwan.
The drills will include Beijing’s forces crossing the median line in the Taiwan Strait, which has previously served as an unofficial border, as well as mock attacks on Taiwanese and foreign ships, the officials added.
Su Tzu-yun, a researcher at Taiwan’s Institute for Defense and Security Studies, warned that Thursday’s drills were larger than usual and designed to demonstrate Beijing’s ability to control the seas and prevent foreign military intervention.
“The political signal here is bigger than the military signal,” he said.
with post wire
