On Wednesday, July 24, China accused Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) leadership for pursuing a separatist agenda opposed to the “One China” policy by consistently portraying mainland China as an enemy. China claimed the DPP’s “Taiwan Independence” stance, supported by the US, is causing high tensions across the Taiwan Strait.
Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said “the DPP authorities are hyping the so-called mainland threat and squandering the hard-earned money of the people in the island to buy weapons from the US,” Global Times reported.
The Chinese reaction followed Taiwan’s annual Han Kuang war games, which started on Monday and will continue until Friday despite Taiwan facing its strongest typhoon in eight years. The war drills, first held in 1984, mark their 40th anniversary this year.
The extravagant five-days war games include live drills to test the Taiwanese military’s preparedness against assumed threats from China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA). This year’s war games are considered the largest ever and coincide with the Wanan air raid drill, testing the country’s preparedness for air raids, amidst growing US interventions in the region.
Meanwhile, Typhoon Gaemi made landfall in northeast Taiwan on Wednesday. Heavy rains with a wind speed of 240 kilometers per hour have devastated several parts of the island, killing and injuring scores of people and displacing over 12,000, forcing all public activities to shut down.
On Thursday morning, a cargo ship sank in Taiwan’s southern port city of Kaohsiung, with all nine crew members reported missing. Thousands of flooding incidents were reported from all across the island, affecting essential services such as electricity and international flight operations. As a result, Taipei was forced to announce a public holiday for the following day. The Taiwanese military deployed large-scale armed forces for rescue missions.
Despite the typhoon’s severity, Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday that the Han Kuang war games and Wannan air raid drills would continue as planned with necessary adjustments, Al Jazeera reported.
“Taiwan Independence:” an excuse to beef up collaboration with the US
China has labeled the massive display of military strength by Taiwan’s DPP-led government as a clear provocation. It maintains that the newly elected Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-te is a separatist who uses “Taiwan independence” to justify increasing military collaboration with the US.
Since his electoral victory, Lai Ching-te has maintained that Taiwan is a sovereign country and has vowed to strengthen the island’s defenses with enhanced military cooperation, including with the US.
China claims that attempts to achieve “Taiwan Independence” through force and collaboration with external forces will escalate tensions and might lead to dangerous situations, including war.
Chen Binhua, another spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office, warned on Monday that Taiwan is a part of China, saying that those who think otherwise should know that it “will never become a country,” People’s Daily reported.
Taiwanese authorities have refused to respond to Chinese concerns and continue to enhance military collaboration with the US. The Biden administration has pledged billions of dollars in weapons to Taiwan and vowed military support in case of an assault, despite officially adhering to the “One China” policy.
China has termed the US policies regarding Taiwan misleading and dangerous, criticizing the DPP leadership for relying on US promises and calling it harmful for Taiwan. Zhu Fenglian expressed hope that more Taiwanese people will understand the reality and oppose DPP leadership’s moves.
