It appears that China is “trying to prepare to start a war against Taiwan”. This was stated by Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu in an exclusive interview with CNN after the Chinese military drills around the island of Taiwan. “If you look at the military exercises and even their rhetoric, it looks like they are trying to prepare for a war against Taiwan,” Wu said. “The Taiwanese government regards the Chinese military threat as something that cannot be accepted and condemns it,” he added. Asked by CNN whether Taiwan has any idea of the timing of Chinese military action given US intelligence assessments that Xi has instructed the military to prepare by 2027, Wu expressed confidence in Taiwan’s preparations: “Chinese leaders will think twice before deciding to use force against Taiwan. And it doesn’t matter if it’s 2025 or 2027 or even beyond, Taiwan just has to prepare,” he said.
Beijing launched the exercises on Saturday, a day after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen returned from a 10-day visit to Central America and the United States, where she met with House Speaker Ysa Kevin McCarthy and other American lawmakers . China called the drills “a serious warning about collusion by Taiwan’s separatist forces with outside forces and a necessary step in defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity.” When asked if the cost of Tsai’s visit was too high, Wu told CNN, “China cannot impose on Taiwan how to make friends. And China cannot dictate how our friends want to show their support for Taiwan.” Beijing also held similar large-scale military exercises in Taiwan last August after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi paid a visit to the island.
Meanwhile, as quoted by CCTV after a naval inspection by the Chinese Army’s Southern Theater Command, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged Chinese forces to “upgrade their military training to be ready for real combat.”