China flexes military muscle: Taiwan braces amid blockade drills
The People's Liberation Army of China began large-scale military exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday, involving all military branches. The exercises aim to simulate a blockade of the island and strikes on sea and land targets. According to Beijing, they are a warning to Taiwanese "separatists."
The Eastern Theater Command, responsible for the Taiwan Strait region, stated that the exercises focus on "blockade on key areas and sea lanes" as well as "assault on maritime and ground targets." Spokesman Colonel Shi Yi emphasized that it is "a legitimate and necessary action to safeguard China’s sovereignty and national unity."
The Chinese military released graphic materials on social media, including a video depicting Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te as a "parasite" and a poster showing Chinese fighter jets and ships around the island with the caption "we are approaching" written in traditional Chinese characters, which are used in Taiwan.
Taiwan responds
The authorities in Taipei condemned the exercises, considering them a threat to peace and stability in the region. Taiwan's Ministry of Defense reported deploying forces to monitor the situation and respond accordingly.
The communist authorities in Beijing claim that Taiwan is part of China, although they have never controlled the territory. China's leader Xi Jinping maintains that "the unification of the motherland" is inevitable and a prerequisite for the "great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." He does not rule out using military intervention for this purpose. According to Beijing, the democratically elected president of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, is a "dangerous separatist."
The largest exercises
The current exercises are the largest since February, when Taipei reported on Chinese "live-fire" drills involving aircraft and warships at a distance of about 46 miles from the island's southern coast. Similar maneuvers, practicing the isolation of the island, took place in October of last year.
Taiwanese authorities reported on Tuesday morning the detection of 19 Chinese ships in the past 24 hours, and the deployment of the aircraft carrier Shandong near the island by the PRC. Taiwan's Ministry of Defense established a center to monitor Chinese military activity.
Capability to impose a naval blockade on Taiwan
Last week, the American newspaper "Wall Street Journal" noted that the Chinese military has achieved the capability to impose a naval blockade on Taiwan. However, given that such an action would be an act of war, the Chinese armed forces might undertake "quarantine" as a less escalatory form of pressure.
Taiwan is particularly vulnerable to a blockade due to its high dependency on imported energy sources (96% gas or coal) and food (70%).
Tensions between China and Taiwan date back to 1949, when Kuomintang nationalist forces led by Chiang Kai-shek fled to the island after losing the civil war to Mao Zedong's communists. The island has been partially or wholly ruled at various times by the Dutch, Spanish, the Chinese Qing dynasty, and Japan.
