(CNN) — China’s military exercises around Taiwan are designed to test its ability to “seize power” over the island, the People’s Liberation Army declared on Friday, as its forces began a second day of large-scale exercises around its democratic neighbor. .
The maneuvers are the largest in more than a year and occur a few days after the new president, Lai Ching-te, was sworn into office in Taiwan, openly detested by Beijing for defending the island’s sovereignty and identity.
Beijing has denounced Lai as a “dangerous separatist” and censored his inauguration speech on Monday, in which he called on China to end its bullying of Taiwan, which has become much more pronounced under leader Xi Jinping.
The PLA, which dwarfs Taipei’s massive military, kicked off the exercises Thursday morning, sending warships and fighter jets around Taiwan and its outlying islands in what it called “a strong punishment to the separatist acts of the Taiwanese independence forces.
A large screen in Beijing shows a Chinese fighter jet taking part in China’s two-day military drills around Taiwan on May 23, 2020. (Credit: Kyodo News/Getty Images)
On Friday, the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command said it was continuing drills on both sides of the Taiwan island chain to “test the ability to jointly seize power, launch joint attacks and occupy key areas.”
China’s ruling Communist Party considers Taiwan part of its territory, despite never controlling it, and has vowed to take the island by force if necessary.
The vast majority of Taiwanese do not want to live under Chinese rule. But Xi, China’s most authoritarian leader in a generation, has made clear that the island’s “inevitable reunification” with the mainland cannot be postponed indefinitely.
The two-day drills, which include joint operations by China’s army, navy, air force and rocket force, are taking place in the Taiwan Strait — a narrow body of water that separates the island from mainland China. , as well as the north, south and east of Taiwan, according to the PLA.
For the first time, the PLA drills also included the participation of the Chinese coast guard, which operated in areas close to the Taiwanese outlying islands of Kinmen, Matsu, Wuqiu and Dongyin, located off the southeastern coast of China.
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry has condemned the Chinese military exercises as “irrational provocations” and has sent its own sea, air and land forces in response.
Between 6:00 a.m. Thursday and 6 a.m. Friday, the ministry detected 49 Chinese planes, 35 of which crossed the Median Line, an informal demarcation point in the Taiwan Strait that Beijing does not recognize but until recently years had greatly respected.
A total of 19 Chinese warships and seven coast guard vessels were detected near the Taiwan Strait, according to the ministry.
