The Presidential Office yesterday called on China to stop all “provocative acts,” saying ongoing Chinese military activity in the nearby waters of Taiwan was a “blatant disruption” of the “status quo” of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
Defense officials said they have detected Chinese ships since Monday, both off Taiwan and farther out along the first island chain.
They described the formations as two walls designed to demonstrate that the waters belong to China.
Photo: Chen Yun, Taipei Times
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said it had detected 53 military aircraft operating around the nation over the past 24 hours, as well as 11 Chinese navy vessels and eight “official” ships, which refer to vessels from ostensibly civilian agencies such as the China Coast Guard.
China restricted airspace off its southeast coast from Monday to yesterday, an indication that it was planning to hold drills, but its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has not confirmed whether it would do so.
Taiwan has been expecting drills following stops by President William Lai (賴清德) in Hawaii and the US territory of Guam during an overseas trip to diplomatic allies in the Pacific last week.
Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) in a statement said that China’s military actions were a “blatant disruption” of regional stability and Beijing should immediately stop all “provocative acts.”
She said that it is customary for presidents to go overseas and that “Taiwan’s normal international exchanges with other countries are not an excuse for China’s provocations.”
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday demanded China cease its military intimidation and “irrational behavior” that endangers regional peace and stability.
The PLA “has unilaterally disrupted peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, needlessly escalating regional tensions,” MOFA said in a statement, adding that these actions have also interfered with routine international shipping and trade.
MOFA said it was responding in part to the activities of a “large number” of Chinese naval and coast guard ships in the first island chain, the Pacific archipelago off the Asian mainland that includes Japan, Taiwan and part of the Philippines.
China’s increased military activity around the nation, including its huge maritime drills and frequent aircraft deployments, was evidence that China is a “troublemaker” undermining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, it added.
In addition, a Taiwanese security official yesterday said that China’s plans for the massive maritime operation began in October, and they are aimed at demonstrating that Beijing could choke off Taiwan.
Beijing’s actions also aim to “draw a red line” ahead of the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump.
“China uses President Lai’s overseas visit as a pretext, with Taiwan only serving as an excuse,” the official said. “The real objective appears to be asserting control within the first island chain and establishing strategic deterrence ahead of the US presidential transition.”
China yesterday said it takes “necessary measures” to defend the country’s sovereignty and would not tolerate “separatist” activities.
“We will absolutely not let things go unchecked. We take necessary measures to resolutely defend the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said, when asked about the increased military activities.
Beijing is “highly vigilant to the trend of separatist Taiwan forces colluding with external forces,” she said at a regular news briefing in Beijing.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that Washington was monitoring China’s “latest activity” and would ensure “nobody does anything to change the status quo in the Strait.”
“Again, our policy hasn’t changed. We’ll continue to do what we can to help Taiwan acquire the means to defend itself,” Austin told reporters at a US base in Japan.
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