The Ministry of National Defense today said it is watching the movements of a Chinese aircraft carrier and assessing China's military activities, as security sources said that Beijing could launch new war games as soon as this weekend.
China has held two rounds of war games around the nation so far this year, and its forces operate nearby on a daily basis.
Photo: Taipei Times
Sources said that Beijing could launch new drills to coincide with President William Lai's (賴清德) trip to the Pacific this week, which includes visits to Hawaii and Guam.
Speaking at a regular news briefing, ministry spokesperson Sun Li-fang (孫立方) said Taiwan knew where the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning was, but could not give details.
The carrier was involved in the last Chinese war games in October.
"The Ministry of National Defense takes a serious view of the enemy situation and handles this matter very seriously. We have very solid preparations and are not afraid of any threats," he said.
Asked whether Chinese war games could start this weekend given that Lai returns to Taiwan late on Friday, Sun declined direct comment.
"We have a very thorough judgement of the enemy situation, and there are a lot of indicators here that we use to make appropriate judgements to deal with the situation," he said.
China's Ministry of National Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Three Taipei-based security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter, said that based on latest intelligence assessments, chances of war games starting this weekend were high.
One source described a "busier" than usual scene in the waters around Taiwan, which might be China positioning itself for the possible drills.
A northbound Russian naval fleet, which included three frigates and one supply vessel, yesterday approached close to Taiwan's contiguous zone 24 nautical miles (45km) off its southeastern coasts and conducted joint simulated attacks on "foreign vessels and aircraft" with a Chinese destroyer nearby, the source said.
The Russian fleet entered the East China Sea early today, and the source said it was expected to continue joint military maneuvers with its Chinese counterparts as it heads north.
Meanwhile, China has deployed nearly 40 vessels in the region, including a Chinese aircraft carrier group led by the Liaoning in the East China Sea, as well as other naval and coast guard boats in the South China Sea.
"The assessments show that China might be making deployment for the drills after the visit," the source said, referring to Lai's Pacific trip.
A second source said that what would be unusual winter drills for China's military would be the kind of practice they would need to be able to attack Taiwan should the need come at any time of the year.
"China has been honing their ability to operate at night, and being able to fight in bad weather is another skill they need to get right," the source added.
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