Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has convened a national security meeting in response to large-scale drills by Beijing's forces around the self-governing island.
In a statement on Monday, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo said that the Taiwanese military was “fully monitoring” Beijing’s exercises, adding that Taipei remains committed to “maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.”
“China should face the reality of the existence of the Republic of China [Taiwan] and respect the Taiwanese people’s choice of a democratic and free way of life,” she said, vowing that the island would “continue to defend the free and democratic constitutional system” in the face of “external threats.”
The Taiwanese Foreign Ministry condemned Beijing's military drills. “This reckless action is particularly provocative after our goodwill call to jointly safeguard Taiwan Strait peace. We uphold democracy and urge China to use self-restraint and refrain from undermining regional stability.”
The island’s Defense Ministry echoed that statement, saying it would “deploy appropriate forces to respond and defend our national sovereignty.”
Beijing’s Eastern Theater Command said that the Joint Sword-2024B exercise involving the Army, Navy, Air Force and other branches of the military would take place north, south and east of Taiwan, explaining that the move “is a strong deterrent to the separatist forces seeking ‘independence’ and is a legitimate and necessary action to defend national sovereignty and maintain national unity.” The command also released a map of the drills, with several marked areas essentially surrounding the island on all sides.
It added that the goal of the exercise is to train sea and air combat readiness patrols, “blockades of key ports and areas, sea and land strikes, and seizing comprehensive control, to test the theater’s joint combat capabilities.”
The US, Taiwan’s main backer, has voiced serious concerns about the situation. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller denounced what he called “military provocations to a routine annual speech” by Lai in a move which is “unwarranted and risks escalation.”
Lai hit out at Beijing last week, saying the country has no right to represent Taiwan, that it is not “subordinate” to Beijing, and that Taipei will “resist annexation or encroachment” on its sovereignty.
China considers the self-governed island a part of its sovereign territory. Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that “reunification” with Taiwan is “inevitable” and that Beijing does not rule out the use of force to bring it back into the fold.