China launches ‘punishment’ drills two days after Taiwan inauguration
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The "Joint Sword-2024A" drills are taking place in the Taiwan Strait and are described as "a powerful disciplinary action" against Taiwanese separatism.
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Helicopters fly over with Taiwan national flag during an inauguration celebration of Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te in Taipei, Taiwan, on May 20, 2024. (AP)
China announced the start of drills around Taiwan with naval vessels and military aircraft, which China's military said is a "strong punishment for the separatist acts of 'Taiwan independence' forces".
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) said simultaneously that the two-day drills involve testing combat capabilities of the aircraft and ships around the island, to which Taiwan responded by deploying air, ground, and sea forces, vowing to "defend freedom".
Taiwan's presidential spokeswoman called the drills "provocative military behavior."
PLA Eastern Theater Command Naval Colonel Li Xi said that the drills, dubbed Joint Sword-2024A, which kicked off at 7:45 am (2345 GMT Wednesday), are taking place in the Taiwan Strait as commentary on state Chinese broadcaster CCTV declared them "a powerful disciplinary action" against Taiwanese separatism.
China's military declared that "the weapon aimed at 'Taiwan independence' to kill 'independence' is already in place".
Read more: US-Taiwan navies held quiet Pacific drills in April: Reuters
'Concerning, but expected': US
However, a Chinese military revealed to CCTV that the drills were partly meant to practice an economic blockade of the island as Zhang Chi, a professor at Beijing's China National Defense University, declared that the drills aimed to "strangle" Taiwan's critical Kaohsiung port to "severely impact" its foreign trade.
They would cut off "Taiwan's lifeline of energy imports" and "block the support lines that some US allies provide to 'Taiwan independence' forces," he added.
In response, US Lieutenant General Stephen Sklenka, speaking in Canberra, called the drills "concerning" but not unexpected.
This comes after China's top diplomat Wang Yi said on Monday that Taiwan's internal politics does not obstruct the fact that the island and China are one part of a full entity, calling all attempts for its independence "dangerous", specifically after Lai Ching-te was instated as president.
Wang Yi said that Taiwan's efforts for independence were "the most serious challenge to the international order," the "most dangerous change in the status quo," and the main disruptor of peace in the Taiwan Strait.
He further asserted that China and Taiwan were one entity as per historical facts, noting that their reunification was inevitable.
When asked about Lai's inauguration, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin warned of the "political manipulation" certain countries exercised regarding the Taiwan issue, which interfered with China's internal politics.
Read next: Lai Ching-te's first day as Taiwan's president marred with protests
"China strongly condemns this, and will take some necessary measures to resolutely protect national sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said.
On Monday, Lai gave his inauguration speech, in which he urged China to "stop threatening Taiwan with war" and to choose dialogue instead of confrontation when it came to Taiwan. He further stated that Taiwan would not be intimidated by China, as it kickstarts a "new era of democracy."
