Published 17:49 IST, December 10th 2024
Is China Conducting Secret Military Drills Near Taiwan Island? Details Inside
Taiwan's Defence Ministry said that it has detected a dozen Chinese naval ships and 47 military planes in the past 24 hours near island's periphery.

Taipei: Taiwan's Defence Ministry on Tuesday said that it has detected a dozen Chinese naval ships and 47 military planes in the past 24 hours but no live-fire activity as in previous military exercises.
The deployment covers a wider area this time, with additional ships going beyond Taiwan into other parts of the Pacific, defence officials said at a news conference.
“China's navy is creating two walls — one at Taiwan's perimeter and another outside the first island chain, which extends south from Japan and through Taiwan to the Philippines. The message they are sending is very simple: The Taiwan Strait is ours,” said Lt. Gen. Hsieh Jih-sheng referring to the waters between Taiwan and China.
China Conducting Military Drills Near Taiwan Island?
China asserts that Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes the island's official engagements with other nations, particularly the United States. Last week, Lai held a phone conversation with US congressional leaders while in Guam.
Although the US, along with most countries, does not officially recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state, it remains the largest provider of arms to the island, which has a population of 23 million, to support its defense.
According to officials, China's secretive military appears to be up to something around Taiwan, but it's unclear whether it's a formal military drill.
‘Training Can Become Drills, Drills Can Become War’
Taiwan officials are referring to the ongoing activity as a training exercise, despite China not making any formal announcement regarding military drills. Hsieh noted that training can become drills, and drills can become war.
“It's in the status of regular training,” he said. “But under the status of normalised training, it's able to mobilize military forces on such a large scale and carry out exercises in such a large area.” China, which views Lai as a separatist, held major military exercises around Taiwan following his inauguration in May and his National Day speech in October.
After Nancy Pelosi, then Speaker of the US House of Representatives, visited Taiwan in 2022, China conducted a major military drill.
In response to heightened Chinese naval activity and the announcement of flight restrictions in seven areas off China's east coast, Taiwan's military established an emergency response center on Monday. These restrictions are set to last until Wednesday.
Hsieh, head of the office of the deputy chief of general staff for intelligence, noted, “We have observed that there have been no live-fire drill activities in the seven exercise zones as previously scheduled."
(With inputs from AP)
Updated 17:49 IST, December 10th 2024