China says military drills near Taiwan were a 'necessary action'
16 September, 2020
Chinese military drills off Taiwan's southwest coast the other day were a "necessary action" to safeguard China's sovereignty, Beijing said on Wednesday (Sep 16), after Taiwan complained the large-scale air and naval exercises were a significant provocation.
China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own, has stepped up military activities close to the island, in what Taiwan views as intimidation to force it to accept Chinese rule.
Taiwan's denounced the two days of exercises last week, which it said occurred in Taiwan's air defence identification zone, between mainland Taiwan and the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands. Taiwan says China sent advanced Su-30 and J-10 fighters to participate.
Offering China's first public explanation for the exercises, Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said Taiwan was a "sacred" and inseparable part of China.
"The relevant combat training activities by the People's Liberation Army were a required action aimed at the existing security situation in the Taiwan Strait and also to safeguard national sovereignty," Ma told a news conference.
In an apparent reference to america, Taiwan's main arms supplier and strongest international supporter, Ma said the drills were also targeted at "the interference of foreign forces" and Taiwan independence activities, not Taiwan's people.
Taiwan's government was allowing anti-China, Western forces to "play the Taiwan card" and become a pawn in stopping China's development, stirring up enmity between the two sides of the strait and seeking Taiwan's independence, Ma said.
"They continue to provoke and so are threat-makers and trouble-makers," he said.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who has warned of the chance of accidental conflict because of the increasing military activities, says the island is already an unbiased country called the Republic of China, Taiwan's formal name.
The Pentagon also expressed concern about China's drills the other day. AMERICA has been carrying out its military activity near Taiwan, including regular warship sailings through the Taiwan Strait.
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