Increase Military Exercise Near Taiwan, China: Fighting Separatist Troops Arrogance

Illustration of military China. (Wikimedia Commons/Presidential Press and Information Office)

JAKARTA - The Chinese government said on Wednesday a series of recent military exercises near Taiwan aimed at embarging the arrogance of separatist forces, while Taiwan's strongest presidential candidate said China was trying to annex the island.

Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, said this month it had observed dozens of warplanes, drones, bombers and other aircraft, as well as Chinese warships and aircraft carrier Shandong, operating near its territory.

The increasing frequency of Beijing's military activity has increased the risk of an "uncontrolled" event and sparked accidental clashes, the island's defense minister said.

When asked about the spike in drills, and Taiwan's concerns about increased risks, Chinese Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Zhu Fenglian admitted the drills carried out by the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

"The goal is to firmly fight the arrogance of Taiwan's independence separatist forces and their actions to seek independence," Zhu said at a regular press conference in Beijing.

"The provocation of Taiwan independence continues throughout the day, and the actions of the People's Liberation Army to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity continue," he added.

Zhu further urged the Taiwanese people to distinguish between "true and wrong", firmly opposing the island's independence and working closely with China to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing strongly dislikes William Lai, the elected presidential candidate in the January elections on the island due to his previous comments in favor of independence.

However, he said he was not trying to change the status quo and had offered talks with Beijing.

The situation in the Taiwan Strait "has not improved over time," Lai, who now serves as Taiwan's Vice President.

"Chinese efforts to annex Taiwan have not changed," he said on the sidelines of warning the 37th anniversary of the founding Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in power today.

On Wednesday, Taiwan's defense ministry reported further Chinese military movements, saying it had detected and responded to 16 Chinese aircraft entering the island's air defense identification zone over the past 24 hours.

Of these, 12 of them crossed the midline of the Taiwan Strait, which became an unofficial barrier between the two sides, to China starting to cross it regularly in August last year.

Last week, Taiwan's Ministry of Defense said it was monitoring Chinese exercises in Fujian Province, across Taiwan. Usually, Taiwan only provides details of exercises in the sky and the waters around it.

A senior Taiwanese official familiar with security planning in the region told Reuters the information was released to demonstrate Taiwan's surveillance and intelligence capacity.

"We can see the details and we are ready," said the source, who spoke without wanting to be named because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Thursday, Taiwan will launch the first submarine of eight domestically made submarines to increase its defenses against China.

Asked about the submarine, Zhu said Taiwan to "seek independence with force" would only exacerbate tensions and "drive the Taiwanese people into dangerous situations".

It is known that the democratically elected Taiwanese government said only people on the island could determine their future, repeatedly offering talks with China, but Beijing rejected them.