Taipei slams Beijing over military drills

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
10 Apr 2023 19:38

Taiwan's foreign ministry says China's military exercises threaten regional peace and stability.

An outdoor screen depicts a Chinese fighter jet pilot giving a thumbs up in the recently concluded Joint Sword exercise around Taiwan during the evening news broadcast in Beijing, Monday, April 10, 2023 (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Taiwan's foreign ministry said on Monday that China is threatening regional peace and stability by conducting military drills on the vicinities of the island in the South China Sea.

Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) kicked off Saturday military drills around the island of Taiwan involving air and sea patrols.

The PLA's 91 military planes and 12 warships were observed approaching, according to the Taiwanese Defense Ministry on Monday.

"91 PLA aircraft and 12 vessels were detected by 18:00 (UTC+8) on April 10th. 54 of the detected aircraft had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait," the ministry said on Twitter.

91 PLA aircraft and 12 vessels were detected by 18:00(UTC+8) on April 10th. 54 of the detected aircraft had crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered our SW & SE ADIZ. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and tasked our assets to respond. pic.twitter.com/iFjSCq9gJX
— 國防部 Ministry of National Defense, R.O.C. 🇹🇼 (@MoNDefense) April 10, 2023

The move came in response to a provocative meeting held between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on April 6.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry released a statement confirming that the Hudson Institute and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library have been sanctioned for providing President Tsai "a platform and convenience to engage in separatist activities" and thus "seriously violating the one-China principle and the provisions of the three China-US joint communiques."

China holds military drills around Taiwan Island. pic.twitter.com/XvVzBlHEOq
— T-House (@thouse_opinions) April 8, 2023

"By using this [Tsai's trip to the US] as a pretext to take provocative actions, China is clearly challenging the international order and undermining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the region," the ministry said in a statement today, noting that when President Tsai traveled to other countries, she exercised "a basic right of a sovereign nation" to engage in diplomatic activities.

Taiwan's foreign ministry stated that Beijing's activities in the region are a violation of the principle of the UN charter that disputes should be resolved peacefully.

Secessionist acts of "#Taiwan independence" and foreign connivance and support for their activities pose the "greatest danger" to cross-Strait peace, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday. #China https://t.co/0147kWuFtE pic.twitter.com/gPFSr3XZ2h
— People's Daily app (@PeoplesDailyapp) April 10, 2023