China began this Friday (24) the second day of exercises by its Armed Forces on the outskirts of Taiwan, which includes “integrated operations inside and outside the archipelago and a test of joint capacity to seize joint power”, according to military sources .
Eastern Theater Command spokesman Li Xi said in a statement that the maneuvers – called Joint Sword – will also consist of training in “joint attacks and control of important areas”.
China’s military action takes place in the same week that Taiwanese President William Lai (Lai Ching-te), considered a “troublemaker” by Beijing, took office.
This Thursday (23), the first day of the exercises, Taiwan asked its citizens for calm, mobilized its Armed Forces and guaranteed that it will protect democracy on the island with “determination”.
The first maneuvers included the participation of at least 42 Chinese aircraft and 31 ships around the island and its peripheral archipelagos, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense.
Of these 42 aircraft, 28 would have crossed the watershed of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial border that has been respected by Beijing and Taipei for decades until 2022, or entered Taiwan’s self-proclaimed Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
This Thursday, the Chinese Armed Forces described the exercises as a “strong punishment” for the “separatist acts” of those seeking “Taiwan independence”, while the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs assured that these were “legitimate and necessary” movements. .
For its part, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry reiterated that the island “will continue to uphold its belief in democracy” and will not change “due to coercion” from China.
China is resorting to these maneuvers for the fourth time since 2022, when it carried out the first in response to the visit of then US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, which infuriated Beijing and raised tensions between the two sides of the narrow to levels not seen in decades.
The autonomous island, whose sovereignty is claimed by Beijing, is one of the main sources of friction between China and the United States – the main country supplying weapons to Taiwan and which can intervene in the event of a conflict.