The Chinese military has conducted a combat readiness patrol in the sea and airspace around Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, a week after the US President threatened military action in case China invaded Taiwan.
The People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command said the exercises took place in recent days which were part of a necessary action against what it described as “US-Taiwan collusion”.
“Recently, the United States has frequently made moves on the Taiwan issue, saying one thing and doing another, instigating support for Taiwan independence forces, which will push Taiwan into a dangerous situation,” the command added in a statement on Wednesday.
Taiwan has reported the largest incursion by Chinese aircraft into its Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) since January with 30 planes, most of them fighter jets, entering the southwest of the ADIZ, Al-Jazeera reported today.
The incident took place as Tammy Duckworth, a US Senator, was visiting the island.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that Beijing had “lodged solemn representations” with the US about her visit.
“We urge relevant US politicians to earnestly abide by the one-China principle, and immediately stop official exchanges with Taiwan in any form and refrain from sending any wrong signals to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” Zhao told a press briefing on Tuesday afternoon.
“China will continue to take forceful measures to resolutely safeguard China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, a Beijing body, also warned in a press conference that it was “very dangerous” for the US to “connive in the separatist activities conducted by Taiwan secessionists”.
Known formally as the Republic of China (ROC), Taiwan lies about 161 kilometres (100 miles) off the coast of mainland China. Once colonised by Japan, Chinese nationalists fled to the island after losing the civil war to the communists who established the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in Beijing.
