By Reuters Staff
3 Min Read
BEIJING (Reuters) -China described its military exercises near Taiwan as “combat drills” on Wednesday, hours before the arrival of senior former U.S. officials in Taipei on a trip to signal President Joe Biden’s commitment to Taiwan and its democracy.
FILE PHOTO: A demonstrator holds flags of Taiwan and the United States in support of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen during an stop-over after her visit to Latin America in Burlingame, California, U.S., January 14, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam
Taiwan has complained over the proximity of repeated Chinese military activity, including fighter jets and bombers entering its air defence zone and a Chinese aircraft carrier exercising off the island, claimed by Beijing.
former Senator Chris Dodd
former US Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg The selection of these three individuals - senior statesmen who are longtime friends of Taiwan and personally close with President Biden - sends an important signal about the US commitment to Taiwan and its democracy, a US statement said.
The PLA combat exercises come a day after China s air force sent a whopping 25 military aircraft to breach Taiwan s airspace in the largest ever such breach.
Senior U.S. officials arrived in Taiwan as China steps up what it calls combat drills around the island https://t.co/D3pOlhsSptpic.twitter.com/bpHMydTnpk
Handout by Taiwan s Ministry of Foreign Affairs / AFP
A U.S. delegation led by former Senator Chris Dodd arrived on the democratic island of Taiwan on Wednesday, amid rising tensions with China.
Dodd s is the first delegation to visit the country since President Joe Biden took office in January. A close personal friend of Biden, Dodd was accompanied by former deputy secretaries of state Richard Armitage and James Steinberg, and greeted by Taiwan foreign minister Joseph Wu.
Taiwan foreign affairs ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou said the delegation s visit would enable it to exchange views on a variety of topics with relevant government departments here.
2021-04-14 10:35:15 GMT2021-04-14 18:35:15(Beijing Time) Xinhua English
BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) Exercises by the People s Liberation Army (PLA) have showcased that the mainland s determination to curb Taiwan independence and collusion between the island and the United States is not empty words, a mainland spokesperson said Wednesday.
Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks while responding to a media query on mainland military drills and training.
Mainland s military exercises do not target the people in Taiwan, but are a response to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority s stepped up provocative actions seeking Taiwan independence in collusion with external forces, Ma said.