The US Department of State on Friday said it “strongly objects” to China’s attempts to “coerce” Taiwan, a day after the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) announced that it had conducted military exercises in the Taiwan Strait.
A State Department spokesperson said in a statement that the US had consistently conveyed to China that it “strongly objects to its attempts to coerce Taiwan.”
“We urge Beijing to honor its commitments to pursue a peaceful resolution of the Taiwan issue, return to dialogue with the democratically elected representatives of the people on Taiwan, and cease military provocations, as well as efforts to isolate Taiwan diplomatically and economically,” it said.
The response came a day after PLA Eastern Theater Command spokesman Zhang Chunhui (張春暉) was quoted by the China Daily as saying that China had “recently” carried out combat exercises in the Strait and condemned “negative acts by some foreign nations,” which he said sent misleading signals to “separatist forces” and threatened regional peace and security.
Zhang’s comments were apparently in reference to US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar’s visit to Taiwan earlier this week.
Azar’s visit, the first by a US Cabinet official since 2014 and the highest-level visit since 1979, drew criticism from China.
On Monday, the second day of Azar’s visit from Sunday last week to Wednesday, two Chinese warplanes briefly crossed the Taiwan Strait median line, Air Force Headquarters said.
US-China relations have been tense in the past few months, amid conflicts on issues including the COVID-19 pandemic, trade and human rights.
On Thursday, the Mainland Affairs Council in Taipei issued its own condemnation of the PLA exercises, saying the nation would never yield to provocations by Beijing and that any acts of intimidation would be strongly opposed.
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