China’s military publicly announced this week that the country is “ready to fight” after it completed three days of large-scale combat exercises around Taiwan.
According to the report, the completion of the exercises simulated the sealing off the island as part of China’s response to the Taiwanese president’s trip to the United States last week.
On Monday, China’s military declared the country’s “combat readiness patrols,” named as Joint Sword which were meant to warn the self-governing Taiwan, the nation which China claims as its own.
In a statement released by the Chinese Military, it was revealed that “The theater’s troops are ready to fight at all times and can fight at any time to resolutely smash any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and foreign interference attempts.”
Reports revealed that the aforementioned exercises were similar to the ones conducted by China last August, when the government launched missile strikes, targeting the seas around Taiwan in response to former speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
In a report published by the New York Post, it was revealed that “Military experts say the exercises serve both as intimidation and as an opportunity for Chinese troops to practice sealing off Taiwan by blocking sea and air traffic, an important strategic option the Chinese military might pursue in the event it uses military force to take Taiwan.”
“The Chinese actions follow President Tsai Ing-wen’s delicate mission to shore up Taiwan’s dwindling diplomatic alliances in Central America and boost its US support, a trip capped with a sensitive meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California. A US congressional delegation also met with Tsai over the weekend in Taiwan after she returned,” the report added.
Amid the controversy, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby released a striking statement, reiterating President Joe Biden’s administration position as he argued that Tsai’s visit to the US and the congressional visit to Taiwan were not out of the norm.
Reports revealed that Tsai visited the United States six times between 2016 and 2019.
“There was no reason to react in any way militarily There’s no reason for tensions across the Taiwan Strait to devolve into any kind of conflict.” Kirby argued.
In response to McCarthy’s meeting, China responded immediately by imposing a travel ban and financial sanctions against those individuals associated with Tsai’s US trip. The country has also reportedly increased military activity through the weekend.
“China wants to use any increase of diplomatic interactions between the US and Taiwan as an excuse to train its military,” Kuo Yu-jen, a defense studies expert and director of the Institute for National Policy Research in Taiwan, said in a statement.
