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Updated August 4th, 2022 at 12:03 IST

China launches large-scale military drills encircling Taiwan after Pelosi's visit; Watch

Two days after US Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan and left China furious, Beijing on Thursday kickstarted large-scale military drills around the island.

Reported by: Aanchal Nigam
China
Image: AP | Image:self
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Two days after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan and left China furious, Beijing on Thursday kickstarted one of its largest military drills around the self-ruled democratic island. In the wake of Pelosi’s whirlwind trip, Chinese state media reported that the live-fire drills in six areas around Taiwan started at noon local time. 

In what is being deemed as China bolstering its military might over its dissatisfaction with Pelosi’s Taiwan visit, The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had begun the maneuvres on Tuesday night before announcing a flurry of trade sanctions on the island. Chinese military activity around Taiwan continued on Wednesday and the island’s defence ministry reported multipole intrusions of its air space by Beijing. According to Taiwan’s Defence Ministry, Chinese drills violated the United Nations (UN) rules. 

China claims Taiwan as its own “breakaway province” and Pelosi’s unannounced visit to the island not only sparked tensions in the region but also deteriorated Washington and Beijing’s already tense relationship. China issued back-to-back condemnations of Pelosi’s visit and pledged that the US would “pay the price” for “hurting” Beijing’s sovereignty. The US House Speaker, however, received a euphoric welcome in Taiwan before she cemented the narrative that the US stands in strong support for Taipei.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) mouthpiece, Global Times unveiled a video showing the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Eastern Theater Command sending advanced warplanes to exercise combat takeoffs from different airports and conduct missions in different airspace. The army organised joint drills featuring its Navy, Air Force, Rocket Force, Strategic Support Force & Joint Logistic Support Force in the sea and air space encircling Taiwan island.

US condemns China’s ‘irresponsible’ military drills 

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the United States termed China’s military drills “irresponsible” after Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. In an interview with National Public Radio, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said, “We believe that what China is doing here is not responsible”. He further said, "Whenever a military engages in a series of activities that include the possibility of missile tests, of live fire exercises, of fighter jets buzzing around the skies and ships moving around on the seas, the possibility of some kind of incident is real” while urging Beijing to de-escalate. 

"What we are hopeful for is that the PRC [People's Republic of China] acts responsibly and avoids the kind of escalation that could lead to a mistake or miscalculation in the air or on the seas," Sullivan said.

(Image: AP)

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Published August 4th, 2022 at 11:30 IST

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