BEIJING –
China on Wednesday reaffirmed its threat to use military force to bring self-governing Taiwan under its control, amid threatening Chinese military exercises that have raised tensions between the sides to their highest level in years.
The statement released by the Cabinet’s Office of Taiwan Affairs and its press office follows nearly a week of missile strikes and incursions into Taiwanese waters and airspace by warships and warplanes. the Chinese Air Force.
The actions have disrupted flights and shipping in a region crucial to global supply chains, drawing strong condemnation from the United States, Japan and others.
An English version of the Chinese statement said Beijing would “work with utmost sincerity and make every effort to achieve peaceful reunification.”
“But we will not renounce the use of force and we reserve the possibility of taking all necessary measures. This is to guard against outside interference and all separatist activities,” the statement said.
“We will always be ready to respond with the use of force or other necessary means to the interference of external forces or the radical action of separatist elements. Our ultimate goal is to secure China’s peaceful reunification prospects and push this process forward,” he said.
China says the threatening measures were prompted by a visit to Taiwan last week by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, but Taiwan says such visits are routine and China has only used this only as a pretext to reinforce his threats.
In a further response to Pelosi’s visit, China said it was cutting off dialogue on issues ranging from maritime security to climate change with the United States, Taiwan’s main military and political backer.
Taiwan’s foreign minister warned on Tuesday that China’s military exercises reflected an ambition to control large swaths of the Western Pacific, while Taipei was conducting its own drills to underscore its willingness to defend itself.
Beijing’s strategy would include controlling the East and South China Seas via the Taiwan Strait and imposing a blockade to prevent the United States and its allies from helping Taiwan in the event of an attack, said Joseph Wu. at a press conference in Taipei.
Beijing has extended the ongoing drills without announcing when they will end.
Taiwan broke away from the mainland amid civil war in 1949 and the island’s 23 million people overwhelmingly oppose political unification with China, while preferring to maintain close economic ties and status. quo de facto independence.
Through its maneuvers, China has moved closer to Taiwan’s borders and may seek to establish a new normal in which it could eventually control access to the island’s ports and airspace.
The United States, Taipei’s main financial backer, has also shown itself ready to deal with Chinese threats. Washington does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan out of respect for Beijing, but is legally bound to ensure the island can defend itself and to treat all threats against it as matters of serious concern.
This leaves open the question of whether Washington would send forces if China attacked Taiwan. US President Joe Biden has repeatedly said the United States has an obligation to do so – but staffers quickly walked back those comments.
Beyond geopolitical risks, a protracted crisis in the Taiwan Strait – an important thoroughfare for global trade – could have major implications for international supply chains at a time when the world is already facing disruption. and uncertainty following the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
In particular, Taiwan is a crucial supplier of computer chips to the global economy, including China’s high-tech sectors.
In response to the drills, Taiwan has put its forces on high alert, but has so far refrained from taking active countermeasures.
On Tuesday, his army held live-fire artillery drills in Pingtung County on its southeast coast.