The exercises will sometimes take just 20 kilometers from the Taiwanese coast and last until Sunday noon. The visit to the island of the speaker of the US House of Representatives on Wednesday is considered a provocation by Beijing.
The World with AFP
Posted today at 06:29, updated at 07:15
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A Chinese military helicopter flies past Pingtan Island, one of mainland China's closest points to Taiwan, in Fujian province on August 4, 2022, ahead of massive military exercises off the coast of Taiwan. Taiwan.
A Chinese military helicopter flies past Pingtan Island, one of mainland China's closest points to Taiwan, in Fujian province on August 4, 2022, ahead of massive military exercises off the coast of Taiwan. Taiwan. HECTOR RETAMAL / AFP
The Chinese army started Thursday, August 4, the most important military maneuvers in its history around Taiwan, a muscular response to the visit to the island of the speaker of the American House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, on the island. . "Exercises begin", namely the Chinese public television CCTV in a message posted on the Weibo social network.
The US representative, who left on Wednesday after staying less than 24 hours, insisted that the United States would not abandon the island, ruled by a democratic regime and which lives under the constant threat of an invasion by the Chinese army. “Those who offend China will have to be punished, ineluctably”, retorted, from a distance, the head of Chinese diplomacy Wang Yi.
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According to the Chinese newspaper Global Times, which quotes military analysts, the exercises are on an "unprecedented" scale. "This is the first time that the Chinese army will launch live ammunition and long-range artillery fire over the Taiwan Strait," insists the daily, known for its nationalist tone.
“An irrational act aimed at challenging the international order”
As a security measure, the Chinese Maritime Security Administration has "prohibited" ships from entering the affected areas. These drills will take place in a variety of areas encircling Taiwan – sometimes just 20 kilometers from the Taiwanese coast – and will last until noon Sunday.
"If the Taiwanese forces come into contact with [the Chinese army] and accidentally fire a shot, [the Chinese army] will retaliate vigorously and it will be up to the Taiwanese side to bear all the consequences," he said. told Agence France-Presse (AFP) an anonymous military source within the Chinese army.