Taiwan announced on Saturday that the military exercises of China appear to simulate an attack on the autonomous island, after several Chinese warships and planes crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait following the visit of the president of the House of Representatives of USA, Nancy Pelosito Taipei that angered Beijing.
Taiwan’s military issued an alert, dispatched air and naval patrols around the island, and activated land-based missile systems in response to Chinese exercises.Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said on Twitter.
China launched live-fire military exercises after Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan earlier this week, saying that violated the “one China” policy. China sees the island as a breakaway province to be forcibly annexed if necessary, and views visits to Taiwan by foreign officials as recognition of its sovereignty.
the army of Taiwan also said it detected four unmanned aerial vehicles flying in the vicinity of Kinmen County. on Friday night, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported.
The four drones, which Taiwan believed to be Chinese, were seen over the waters around the Kinmen island group and nearby Lieyu Island and Beiding Islet, according to Taiwan’s Kinmen Defense Command.
The Taiwanese military fired warning flares in response.
Kinmen, also known as Quemoy, is a group of islands just 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) east of the Chinese coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province in the Taiwan Strait, which divides the two sides that are split in the midst of civil war in 1949.
“Our government and military are closely monitoring China’s military exercises and information warfare operations, ready to respond as needed.”Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said in a tweet.
“I call on the international community to support democratic Taiwan and stop any escalation of the regional security situation,” he added..
The Chinese military exercises began last Thursday and are expected to last until Sunday. So far, the exercises have included missile attacks on targets in the seas to the north and south of the island in an echo of the last major Chinese military exercises in 1995 and 1996 aimed at intimidating Taiwan leaders and voters.
Taiwan has put its military on alert and has organized civil defense drills, while the United States has deployed numerous naval assets to the area.
The Biden administration and Pelosi have said the United States remains committed to a “one China” policy, which recognizes Beijing as the government of China but allows informal relations and defense ties with Taipei. The administration discouraged but did not prevent Pelosi from visiting her.
China has also cut off defense talks with the United States, and imposed sanctions on Pelosi in retaliation for the visit.
Pelosi said Friday in Tokyo, the last stop on her Asia tour, that China will not be able to isolate Taiwan by preventing US officials from traveling there.
Pelosi has long been a champion of human rights in China. She, along with other lawmakers, visited Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1991 to support democracy two years after a bloody military crackdown on protesters in the square.
(with information from AP)
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Source-www.infobae.com