Chinese The army is holding an exercise nearby Taiwan In response to the visit of the US Congress delegation to the island.
The Chinese Ministry of National Defense stated in an announcement on Tuesday that the exercises held in the Taiwan Strait area are “necessary measures to safeguard national sovereignty,” but did not specify the time, participants and location of the exercises.
It said that the “joint combat readiness patrol” in the eastern theater was promoted by the “serious wrong words and deeds of the relevant countries on the Taiwan issue” and the actions of people advocating the independence of autonomous islands.
China will hold Taiwan independence supporters criminally responsible, including senior officials
The United States has a strong but informal relationship with Taiwan, and tensions between the United States and China over Hong Kong, the South China Sea, the coronavirus pandemic, trade and other issues continue to escalate. According to reports, details of the US delegation that arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday were not immediately available.
An unnamed spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense issued a statement strongly condemning the visit, stating that “no one should underestimate the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s firm determination to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Chinese people.”
China regards Taiwan as its territory and annexes it by force if necessary. The two sides split in the civil war in 1949. After a brief reconciliation, under the leadership of Taiwan’s independent president Tsai Ing-wen, relations became increasingly tense.
During China’s National Day weekend in early October, China sent 149 military aircraft to the southwestern part of Taiwan to form a strike group, which led to Taiwan’s emergency takeoff and activation of its air defense missile system. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said this week that such tactics are designed to weaken Taiwan’s defenses and lower morale.
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby stated that Congress’ visits to Taiwan are “relatively common and conform to the obligations of the United States under the Taiwan Relations Act”. As a “serious concern” issue.
According to Taiwan’s official Central News Agency, the delegation arrived in Taipei on a C-40 express passenger plane on Tuesday night, which took off shortly afterwards. Kirby said these delegations are used to flying on US military aircraft.
The details of the members of the delegation and how long they plan to stay on the island are not immediately available.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Joanne Ou said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has cooperated with the American Association in Taiwan (the actual US Embassy) on visit arrangements, but did not disclose details. She said that more information will be released “in due course.”
Although the United States transferred from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, it still maintains strong informal political and military relations with Taiwan. As a vibrant democracy, Taiwan has also received strong support from both parties in Congress. The US government has been promoting relations through high-level exchanges of visits and arms sales.
This has been a major source of friction with Beijing in a series of disputes over trade, technology, human rights and other issues.
© 2021 Canadian Press
