China breaks silence on possible drills, says it will not be soft on Taiwan independence activities
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Taiwan's Defence Ministry on Dec 9 went on the alert and activated an emergency response centre after reporting a rise in Chinese military activity.
PHOTO: REUTERS
BEIJING/TAIPEI - China's Defence Ministry on Dec 13 broke its silence about days of military activities around Taiwan, saying that it was up to China to decide whether to hold drills, and that the military would "not be absent" in fighting against separatist forces.
Taiwan's Defence Ministry on Dec 9 went on the alert and activated an emergency response centre after reporting a large rise in Chinese military activity
China's military had made no announcement about any drills taking place. Beijing views democratically governed Taiwan as its territory – a claim rejected by the government in Taipei, which says only Taiwan's people can decide their future.
In a statement responding to a question on Taiwan President Lai Ching-te's recent visits to Hawaii and the US territory of Guam, and whether China has held drills, China's Defence Ministry offered neither confirmation nor denial, though it quoted from ancient Chinese military tactician Sun Tzu.
"Just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions," the ministry said, an expression that means war conditions are unpredictable and constantly in flux.
"Whether or not to hold exercises and when to hold them is a matter for us to decide on our own according to our own needs and the situation of the struggle," it added.
"Regardless of whether or not exercises are held, the People's Liberation Army will not be absent and will not be soft in its fight against independence and for reunification."
Any reliance on "foreign forces to seek independence" – the usual wording China uses to warn the US off supporting Taiwan – will be severely punished and is "doomed to failure", the ministry added.
China has staged two rounds of war games around Taiwan so far in 2024, most recently in October responding to Mr Lai's National Day speech, saying they were a warning to "separatist acts" and vowing to take further action if needed.
On Dec 13, Taiwan’s Defence Ministry said that China’s threat towards the island had been evolving since 2022, when it began staging the current round of war games, from “deterring Taiwan” to “impacting the First Island Chain”, an area that stretches from Japan through to Taiwan, along the Chinese coast and into the South China Sea.
“China’s long-term goal of deterring regional parties and disrupting the rules-based international order will not be endorsed by the international community,” it said in a statement.
Security sources had expected China to hold drills to coincide with Mr Lai's US trip, and also to send a warning to the incoming Trump administration about China's red lines.
On Dec 12, the de facto US embassy in Taiwan said that Chinese military activity in the region was currently elevated, but it did not see that wider activity as a response to Mr Lai's US visit.
Later that day, Taiwan's Defence Ministry said it has disbanded its emergency response centre, signalling an end to the current round of Chinese military activities.
On the morning of Dec 13, the ministry said it had spotted only 12 Chinese military aircraft operating nearby in the past 24 hours, down from 34 reported the previous day.
Taiwan’s coast guard also said on Dec 13 that nine Chinese coast guard ships which were off the island’s south-east and south-west coasts had headed northwards after carrying out “undue” activities in recent days.
Taiwan’s coast guard published pictures and video of its ships shadowing Chinese vessels off the island’s east coast in rough seas and under grey skies.
“All the Chinese coast guard went back to China yesterday, thus, although they haven’t officially made any announcement, we consider it over,” Mr Hsieh Ching-chin, deputy director-general of Taiwan’s coast guard, told AFP. REUTERS, AFP
