Chinese military exercises earlier this week were aimed at threatening Taiwan ahead of today’s presidential inauguration, Ministry of National Defense officials told legislators yesterday, adding that the armed forces are ready to defend the nation.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator (DPP) Tsai Shih-ying (蔡適應) questioned the ministry’s response on Tuesday, when it said that war games conducted by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) 31st Group Army based in Fujian Province were “routine exercises, which are conducted annually.”
The ministry is “fully aware of it and is constantly monitoring it,” it added.
Photo: CCTV via AP Video
Not satisfied with the response, DPP lawmakers questioned ministry officials at yesterday’s meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.
“I do not believe it is merely a routine exercise by the PLA. They conducted large-scale war games with live-fire weapons and amphibious landings at a southeast coastal area near Taiwan,” Tsai said. “China is doing it this week and broadcasting it on state media for the world to see, just before our presidential inauguration ceremony. Is this routine or just a coincidence? I do not think so.”
Ministry officials said that the PLA war games were likely aimed at sending a political message to Taiwan and to put pressure on president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to acknowledge the “one China” principle and the so-called “1992 consensus” in her inaugural address.
Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Pei-shan (許培山) said China has persisted in its military threats and missile deployment against Taiwan, and has shown no signs of letting up.
Tsai Shih-ying asked the ministry if the nation’s troops are ready for the incoming administration and if they are prepared to defend Taiwan in case of war.
He added that there are rumors that some military officials and their units are troubled by the prospect of a female commander-in-chief and do not want to take orders from the new president.
Hsu said there is no such problem.
“The armed forces are loyal to our nation, no matter which political party holds power. We obey the laws of the nation and will serve the new president, who is the highest civilian leader of our country as elected by the people,” he said.
DPP legislators asked the ministry to use its internal media outlets to disseminate this message to all military troops pledging allegiance to the president and the nation.
Hsu and other defense officials said that after today’s inauguration, all photographs of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) would be taken down in military offices and replaced by photographs of Tsai Ying-wen over the next few days.
Taiwan has arranged for about 8 million barrels of crude oil, or about one-third of its monthly needs, to be shipped from the Red Sea this month to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ease domestic supply pressures, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday. The state-run oil company has worked with Middle Eastern suppliers to secure routes other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically passes, CPC chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. Suppliers in Saudi Arabia have indicated they
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
AIR ALERT: China’s reservation of airspace over the Yellow Sea and East China Sea could be an attempt to test the US’ response ahead of a Trump-Xi meeting, the NSB head said China’s attempts to infiltrate Taiwan are systematic, planned and targeted, with activity shifting from recruiting mid-level military officers to rank-and-file enlisted personnel, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) integrates national security, intelligence operations and “united front” efforts into a dense network to conduct intelligence gathering and espionage in Taiwan, Tsai said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. It uses specific networks to screen targets through exchange activities and recruiting local collaborators to establish intelligence-gathering organizations, he said. China is also shifting who it targets to lower-ranking military personnel,
RSS