Tension rises across Taiwan Strait as China encircles island over Lai speech, Taipei vows strong defence

China on encircled Taiwan in military drills simulating the invasion of the self-ruled island.

China considers Taiwan to be a breakaway province and is committed to its reunification with the mainland. China has not ruled out the use of force for such reunification. As China has become increasingly belligerent under President-for-Life Xi Jinping, there are fears that an invasion is on the cards in coming years.

As China encircled Taiwan on Monday, Taipei vowed to protect the self-ruling island.

“In the face of external threats, I would like to reassure my compatriots that the government will continue to defend the democratic and free constitutional system, protect democratic Taiwan, and safeguard national security,” said Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te.

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Separately, the Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense (MND) said that at least 16 Chinese warplanes entered Taiwan’s airspace.

“Twenty-five PLA aircraft, 7 PLAN vessels, and four official ships operating around Taiwan were detected up until 8 a.m. (UTC+8) today. Sixteen of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s southwestern and eastern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded accordingly,” said the MND.

25 PLA aircraft, 7 PLAN vessels and 4 official ship operating around Taiwan were detected up until 8 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 16 of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s southwestern and eastern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded accordingly. pic.twitter.com/ga1HaEVaQl

— 國防部 Ministry of National Defense, ROC(Taiwan) 🇹🇼 (@MoNDefense) October 14, 2024

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As China continued to encircle Taiwan with warships and warplanes in the fourth round of large-scale military exercises in just two years, a military spokesperson said that the exercises were a practice to lay a blockade of Taiwan and then invade the self-ruling island.

‘Stern warning to separatist forces’

China dubbed the military drills starting Monday as a “stern warning to the separatist acts of ‘Taiwan Independence’ forces”, according to AFP.

This was an apparent reference to Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). China hates the DPP and its leaders and openly campaigned against the party in the presidential election earlier this year.

China has dubbed the drills as Joint Sword-2024B.

Chinese Eastern Theatre Command Spokesperson Li Xi said that the drills were aimed at testing “joint operations capabilities” of troops, according to AFP.

Li said that the drills are taking place in “areas to the north, south and east of Taiwan Island” and are “focusing on subjects of sea-air combat-readiness patrol, blockade on key ports and areas” and practising an “assault on maritime and ground targets”.

Li said that the Liaoning aircraft carrier group “with its troops of army, navy, air force and rocket force” is part of the drills.

The zones for the latest People’s Liberation Army military drills on all sides of #Taiwan which the PLA says are a practice run for attacking the democratically governed island from multiple directions. #China pic.twitter.com/u6MnKBTnld

— Stephen McDonell (@StephenMcDonell) October 14, 2024

Taiwan responded to the drills by launching 12 warplanes to respond to any situation, reported AFP journalists who saw the planes taking off.

Amid ongoing Chinese aggression, Taiwan’s outlying islands were on “heightened alert” and “aircraft and ships will respond to enemy situations in accordance with the engagement rules”, said the Taiwanese MND.

China’s drills meant to intimidate Taiwan, say experts

The ongoing Chinese military drills around Taiwan are an act of intimidate Taiwan, according to experts.

While China has not ruled out the use of force to annex Taiwan, a military invasion would be the last resort and China wants to coerce the self-ruled island into voluntary submission. However, that does not appear to be likely as polls have shown that Taiwanese public does not favour surrendering to the Chinese regime.

China’s aim with successive rounds of drills is to remind Taiwan of its overwhelming strategic superiority, said BBC’s Frank Gardner.

“It [China] has recently embarked on a massive military build-up in all areas: hypersonic missiles, aircraft carriers, nuclear warheads and fifth generation combat aircraft. The PLA Navy is now the largest in the world and still growing. And yet a full-scale invasion of Taiwan would be something of a last resort for the CCP. It would be hugely costly, both in terms of manpower and economic damage to the global economy,” said Garnder in an analysis for BBC.

Professor Zhang Chi from China PLA National Defence University told Chinese state media that the drills were a message to Taiwanese President Lai that moves towards “Taiwan independence” are bound to meet a “dead end”.

“The more the separatist forces dare to provoke, the further the PLA will advance. The closer the separatists align with external forces, the tighter the chain of Taiwan’s blockade will become,” said Chi.

Separately, Lieutenant Colonel Fu Zhengnan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences, told state media that the drills told the world that the Chinese military could “switch from training to combat at any time.”