President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday offered his support and encouragement to the armed forces ahead of what the government has warned could be a new round of Chinese military exercises near Taiwan from as early as next week.
Taiwan cannot rule out that China would hold more military drills to “stir up trouble” around the one-year anniversary on Tuesday next week of Lai taking office, a senior government spokesperson said in Taipei on Thursday.
China calls Lai a “separatist” and has rebuffed his multiple offers for talks. Lai rejects China’s sovereignty claims over Taiwan, saying only its people can decide their future.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
Lai visited army engineers and anti-submarine helicopter crews at bases in Kaohsiung to thank them for their efforts before Dragon Boat Festival at the end of this month.
The army engineers and the navy’s anti-submarine aviation command are the “cornerstones of the nation’s armed forces’ military strength and also indispensable to the overall national defense strategy,” he told a group of helicopter crew members at a lunch at Zuoying (左營) naval base.
“It is only because of your hard work and dedication that the military continues to thrive and the nation’s people can live and work in peace and happiness,” he added. “Let’s work together to protect national security.”
Lai, who made no direct mention of China or potential for more drills, was accompanied by Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) and National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮).
The Chinese Ministry of National Defense and its Taiwan Affairs Office this week said that Lai was a “Taiwan Strait crisis maker” who had increased antagonism and confrontation, and undermined peace and stability.
Last month, China held war games code-named “Strait Thunder-2025A” around Taiwan, the “A” at its end suggesting there could be more to come.
China called its drills in May last year “Joint Sword-2024A”, held shortly after Lai took office, and in October staged “Joint Sword-2024B.”
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