China does live-fire drills near Taiwan as tensions rise

China has stepped up military drills near Taiwan, which has made Taipei worried and led US partners to increase their naval presence.

China did a live-firing drill from the area closest to Taiwan a week after starting a large-scale drill around the island.

As China’s claims over Taiwan’s self-government island have grown over the past few years, military drills off the coast of Taiwan have gotten bigger.

Beijing said late Monday night that drills will take place in an area around Niushan, an island 105 km (66 miles) from Taiwan, for four hours on Tuesday starting at 9:00 local time (02:00 WAT).

On Tuesday, Taiwan’s leader Cho Jung-tai said that China shouldn’t be doing these kinds of exercises because they could upset the balance of power in the area.

He told reporters, “Drills shouldn’t happen often and close to Taiwan, no matter how big they are.” “This will only add stress that isn’t needed.”

Analysts think China is probably sending a message because they are so close to Taiwan, even though Taipei has called the drills routine.

As part of a larger operation, Chinese ships and planes have been regularly entering Taiwanese airspace and territory. This is a form of “gray zone warfare” meant to make the invasions seem normal and weaken Taiwan over time.

As the drills by China have gotten bigger, so have moves by Taiwan’s friends, mostly the US.

For many years, the US Pacific force was the only foreign navy that regularly crossed the Taiwan Strait, which separates the two sides, to show that it had the right to free navigation.

But lately, allies of the US like Canada, Germany, Australia, and Japan have been joining these patrols as part of what are known as “high visibility” missions.

The last one was over the weekend, when warships from the US and Canada passed through the water.

Analysts say this shows that both China and the US are sending stronger signals. Beijing is making its claims about Taiwan stronger, and Washington is making it clear that it backs the island.

On the other hand, a US official told reporters that Washington wants to ease tensions with Beijing because the US is currently focused on crises in the Middle East and Europe.

The source said that China is still the US’s biggest long-term threat.

Beijing sent a record 153 military planes, warships, and coast guard boats to surround Taiwan last Monday as part of a drill meant to look like an attack from land, sea, and air.

On October 10, Taiwanese President William Lai gave a speech for National Day in which he promised to “resist annexation or encroachment upon Taiwan’s sovereignty.”

“Neither China nor Taiwan are below each other,” he said, adding that China “has no right to speak for Taiwan.”

China has said many times that it will take Taiwan by force if it has to. It has long seen Lai as a “troublemaker” who wants Taiwan to be free.