Chinese military helicopters fly over Pingtan island, the closest point in China to Taiwan's main island, in Fujian province on 19 May. Photo: AFP/Getty image.
China launched what is called a "punishment" drills in Taiwan surrounding on Thursday in what it said was a response to "separatist acts", sending up heavily armed warplanes and staging mock attacks as state media denounced newly inaugurated President Lai Ching-te.
The exercises, in the Taiwan Strait and around groups of Taiwan-controlled islands that sit next to the Chinese coast, come just three days after Lai took office, a man Beijing detests as a "separatist"
China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has denounced Lai's inauguration speech on Monday, in which he called on China to stop its threats and said the two sides of the strait were "not subordinate to each other".
On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called Lai "disgraceful".
Lai has repeatedly offered talks with China but been rebuffed. He says only Taiwan's people can decide their future, and rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.
The Eastern Theatre Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) said it had started joint military drills, involving the army, navy, air force and rocket force, in areas around Taiwan at 7:45 a.m. (2345 GMT).
The drills are being conducted in the Taiwan Strait, the north, south and east of Taiwan, as well as areas around the Taiwan-controlled islands of Kinmen, Matsu, Wuqiu and Dongyin, the command said in a statement.
Chinese state media said China sent out dozens of fighter jets carrying live missiles, and conducted mock strikes, along with warships, of high-value military targets.
The drills, dubbed "Joint Sword - 2024A", are scheduled to last for two days. However, unlike a similar "Joint Sword" exercise in April last year, these drills are tagged "A", opening the door to potential follow-ups.
Taiwan's defence ministry condemned the drills, saying that it had dispatched forces to areas around the island, that its air defences and land-based missile forces were tracking targets, and that it was confident it could protect its territory.
"The launch of military exercises on this occasion not only does not contribute to the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait, it also highlights (China's) militaristic mentality," the ministry said.
Taiwan's presidential office expressed regret that China was threatening the island's democratic freedoms and regional peace and stability with its "unilateral military provocations", but said people could rest assured Taiwan could ensure its security.
A senior Taiwan official, speaking anonymously given the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters that the drills are part of a scenario Taiwan had anticipated and that the island's government had a "comprehensive grasp" of Chinese military movements.
Taiwanese officials had said in the run-up to the inauguration they were keeping watch for Chinese military movements. China last staged large-scale war games near Taiwan in 2023 and 2022.
The drills focus on joint sea-air combat-readiness patrols, precision strikes on key targets, and integrated operations inside and outside the island chain to test the "joint real combat capabilities" of the forces, China's military said.
"This is also a strong punishment for the separatist acts of Taiwan independence forces and a stern warning against the interference and provocation by external forces," the command added.
Chinese state media published a map of the drill zones, in five areas all around Taiwan and the islands Taiwan controls near the Chinese coast.
Taiwanese officials told Reuters those areas were outside Taiwan's contiguous zone, which is 24 nautical miles from the main island's coast.
One of the officials said China has not announced any no-fly zones, nor has Taiwan observed any large-scale movements of China's ground and rocket forces.
Su Tzu-yun, a research fellow at Taiwan's top military think tank, the Institute for National Defence and Security Research, said that although the drills would only last two days, the scope is large relative to previous exercises, as they included Taiwan's outlying islands.
This is designed to demonstrate China's ability to control the seas and prevent the involvement of foreign forces, he said.
"The political signals here are greater than the military ones," he added.
There was no sign of alarm in Taiwan, where people are long used to Chinese military activity. The benchmark stock index (.TWII), currently running at historic highs, was up 0.2% on Thursday.
"The drills will have a short-term psychological impact, but won't reverse the long-term upward trend of Taiwan stocks," said Mega International Investment Services vice president Alex Huang.
A central bank official told Reuters the foreign exchange market was operating as normal, with no abnormal entry or exit of foreign capital.
In August 2022, China launched live-fire military exercises around Taiwan immediately after a visit, much condemned by Beijing, by former U.S. House speaker Nancy Pelosi. That series of exercises, the scale of which was unprecedented, lasted for four days, followed by several days of additional drills.
Source: Reuters
新國家主席就職後中國在台灣週邊展開軍事演習
中國週四在台灣週邊地區發起了所謂的「懲罰」演習，據稱這是對「分離主義行為」的回應，在官方媒體譴責新上任的總統賴清德之際，中國出動了全副武裝的戰機並進行了模擬襲擊。
這些演習在台灣海峽和毗鄰中國海岸的台灣控制島嶼周圍舉行，是在賴智上台三天后舉行的，北京痛恨賴為“分裂分子”
中國將民主治理的台灣視為自己的領土，譴責了黎智英週一的就職演說，他在演說中呼籲中國停止威脅，並表示海峽兩岸「互不隸屬」。
週二，中國外交部長王毅稱賴「可恥」。
黎智英曾多次提出與中國進行會談，但遭到拒絕。 他表示，只有台灣人民才能決定他們的未來，並拒絕北京的主權主張。
中國人民解放軍東部戰區表示，已於上午7時45分（格林威治標準時間2345）開始在台灣週邊地區舉行陸軍、海軍、空軍和火箭軍聯合軍事演習。
演習在台灣海峽、台灣北部、南部和東部以及台控金門、馬祖、烏丘、東引等島嶼週邊地區進行。
中國官方媒體稱，中國出動了數十架攜帶飛彈的戰鬥機，並與軍艦一起對高價值軍事目標進行了模擬打擊。
這次演習被稱為“聯合劍-2024A”，預計持續兩天。 然而，與去年4月類似的“聯合劍”演習不同，這些演習被標記為“A”，為潛在的後續行動打開了大門。
台灣國防部譴責了這次演習，稱其已向台灣週邊地區派遣部隊，其防空和陸基飛彈部隊正在追蹤目標，並有信心能夠保護自己的領土。
國防部表示：“藉此機會發動軍演，不僅無助於台海和平穩定，反而凸顯了（中國）軍國主義心態。”
台灣總統府對中國以「單方面軍事挑釁」威脅台灣的民主自由和區域和平與穩定表示遺憾，但表示台灣可以確保其安全，民眾可以放心。
鑑於此事的敏感性，一名不願透露姓名的台灣高級官員告訴路透社，這些演習是台灣預料到的情況的一部分，台灣政府「全面掌握」中國的軍事動向。
台灣官員在就職典禮前曾表示，他們正在密切關注中國的軍事行動。 中國上一次在台灣附近舉行大規模軍演是在2023年和2022年。
中國軍方表示，演習以海空聯合戰備巡邏、重點目標精確打擊、島鏈內外一體化作戰等為重點，檢驗部隊「聯合實戰能力」。
這也是對台獨勢力分裂行徑的嚴厲懲處，也是對外部勢力干涉和挑釁的嚴正警告。
中國官方媒體發布了一張鑽探區地圖，分佈在台灣周圍的五個地區以及台灣控制的中國海岸附近的島嶼上。
台灣官員告訴路透社，這些地區位於台灣毗連區之外，距離主島海岸 24 海浬。
其中一名官員表示，中國尚未宣布任何禁飛區，台灣也沒有觀察到中國地面部隊和火箭軍有任何大規模行動。
台灣最高軍事智庫國防安全研究院研究員蘇子雲表示，雖然演習時間只有兩天，但相對以往演習來說，範圍較大，包括了台灣離島。
他說，此舉旨在展示中國控制海洋並防止外國勢力介入的能力。
「這裡的政治信號比軍事信號更大，」他補充道。
台灣沒有任何驚慌的跡象，人們早已習慣了中國的軍事活動。 基準股指 (.TWII) 目前處於歷史高位，週四上漲 0.2%。
兆豐國際投資服務副總裁Alex Huang表示：“演習會產生短期心理影響，但不會扭轉台股長期上漲的趨勢。”
一位央行官員告訴路透社，外匯市場運作正常，沒有外資異常進出。
2022 年 8 月，美國前眾議院議長南希·佩洛西 (Nancy Pelosi) 訪問台灣後，中國立即在台灣周圍發動了實彈軍事演習，此舉遭到北京方面的強烈譴責。 這一系列規模空前的演習持續了四天，隨後又進行了幾天的加演。
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