Beijing shows its muscles. China’s military announced “combat readiness” exercises in the Taiwan Strait on Saturday, amid tensions with the island after a meeting in the United States of its president Tsai Ing-wen and the third personage of the American State.
“The People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command will conduct a preparation exercise in the Taiwan Strait, the northern and southern parts of the island, and the airspace around the island from April 8 to 10. of the Chinese army. These maneuvers will also include “police patrols,” the document adds. The exact location of these exercises, which must end on Monday, is not specified.
13 aircraft and three ships detected
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said on Saturday that it had detected 13 aircraft and three warships around the island. The narrowest part of the strait between the Chinese coast and Taiwan is about 130 kilometers wide.
China considers the island, with 23 million inhabitants, one of its provinces, which has not yet managed to reunify with the rest of its territory since the end of the Chinese civil war. Ended in 1949, the conflict pitted the communists, who eventually seized power in mainland China, against the nationalist army, forced to retreat to the island.
Chinese authorities have tried to isolate Taipei diplomatically since President Tsai Ing-wen came to power in 2016 because she is a member of a party that has traditionally campaigned for independence, an absolute red line for Beijing.
Following his meeting on Wednesday in the United States with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, China sent warships, a helicopter and a fighter jet to the Taiwan Strait on Thursday and Friday.
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