On Saturday, the Chinese army began three-day military exercises around the island of Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, but which the United States has pledged to arm and defend.
The military maneuvers began after Taiwanese President Tsai Jing-wen met with Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy in the United States.
Chinese state television reported that combat readiness patrols and exercises are continuing around Taiwan.
Several units of the Chinese military have conducted simulated precision strikes against key targets on the island of Taiwan and in the surrounding maritime areas, and continue to maintain an offensive position around the island.
They announced.
The Chinese army’s Eastern Theater Command also posted a short animation of the simulated attacks on its WeChat account.
The footage shows missiles fired at Taiwan from land, sea and air, two of which caught fire when they hit their targets. Footage of the simulation was also shown on Chinese state television.
This is what China’s state-run broadcaster CCTV imagines “precision strikes against key targets in Taiwan and in the surrounding waters” would look like.
Animation from today’s news broadcast 17:00 pic.twitter.com/geLjje9dWH
– David Demes 戴 達 衛 (@DemesDavid) April 9, 2023
A source familiar with the security situation in the region is a to Reuters He said China had carried out simulated air and sea attacks against “foreign military targets” in the waters off the southwestern coast of Taiwan.
Taiwan is not their only destination. This is very provocative
The source, who was not authorized to speak, told the media.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense also spoke
Taiwan’s defense ministry said 70 Chinese aircraft, including Su-30 fighters and H-16 fighter-bombers, and 11 ships were spotted around Taiwan on Sunday.
As for the Chinese army’s movements, the Chinese army also has a close line of sight through the joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system, and the air defense forces are still on high alert.
Ministry announced.
According to the security source, about 20 Taiwanese and Chinese ships encountered each other at the central line of the Taiwan Strait, which serves as an unofficial border between the two sides. The source said the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong, which has been under surveillance by Taiwan since last week, is now more than 400 nautical miles off the southeastern coast of Taiwan and is conducting exercises.
For the first time, China has spoken publicly about simulating attacks
Zhao Xiaozhu of the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences told the Chinese state-backed Global Times newspaper that this was the first time China had publicly talked about simulated attacks on Taiwanese targets.
Zhao said the main targets would include infrastructure facilities such as runways, military logistical facilities and mobile targets to “destroy them in one fell swoop if necessary”.
US lawmakers will send military aid to Taiwan
The chairman of the US House of Representatives Special Committee on China called for military aid to Taiwan on Sunday. Republican Representative Mike Gallagher responded to the fact that the People’s Republic of China’s army has begun military exercises off the coast of Taiwan, which it considers part of China.
In an interview with the AP and Fox News, Mike Gallagher stated that the work of the House Special Committee focuses on strengthening the defense capability of the government in the island nation and encourages Congress to send military aid to Taiwan.
He also said that the United States should quickly provide Taiwan with weapons systems to enhance its self-defense capacity.
Taiwan spotted several Chinese planes and warships on Monday morning as well
The ministry announced that the Taiwan Ministry of Defense had detected 59 Chinese military aircraft and 11 warships near Taiwan by 10:00 a.m. Monday. According to the announcement, 39 aircraft crossed the central line of the Taiwan Strait separating China and Taiwan, thus penetrating the island’s air defense zone.
The Japanese Defense Ministry also announced on Monday that Chinese aircraft carriers carried out operations over the weekend in the Okinawa archipelago in the southwestern part of the island. The ministry said that between Friday and Sunday, fighter jets and helicopters landed 120 times on the ship, which – along with three other warships – approached the archipelago’s Miyako Island, 230 kilometers away.
Meanwhile, high-level Japanese and Chinese officials will hold talks on Monday on disputed maritime issues between Beijing and Tokyo. The pre-planned discussions are part of a series of negotiations that began in 2012. In March, the two countries also established a military hotline to prevent potential sea and air disputes.
