Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Friday 20 april 2018
Taiwan calls Chinese military drills a threat to region

the coordination of various
types of armed helicopters
that detected targets on
the water and attacked
them.
It was unclear if the exer-
cises referred to earlier drills
announced by China that
were to take place in the
Taiwan Strait. State broad-
caster China Central Tele-
vision reported Wednes-
day that the Taiwan Strait
exercises targeted advo-
cates of formal indepen-
dence for Taiwan, saying
in a headline on its web-
site, "Don't say you haven't
been warned!"
China's defense ministry did
not immediately respond
to questions.
China severed ties with Tai-
wan almost two years ago,
In this April 18, 2018, photo provided by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Chinese armed helicopter assaults targets with rocket after independence-lean-
projectiles in a live-fire exercise off China's southeast coast. ing President Tsai Ing-wen
Associated Press refused its demand to rec-
ognize the self-governing
BEIJING (AP) — Taiwan's not yield to military threats Ma was responding to a China's live-fire exercises island democracy as a part
government said Thursday or inducements," the state- question about whether off its southeast coast on of Chinese territory.
that recent Chinese military ment said. an increase in Chinese air Wednesday, echoing ear- Chinese officials have
drills are aimed at intimi- Underscoring the height- force training flights around lier comments from the de- denounced the recent
dating the island and are ened tensions between the Taiwan was a response to fense ministry that Beijing passage of a U.S. law en-
a threat to regional peace rivals, China's Taiwan Affairs comments from Taiwanese was playing up the limited- couraging more high-level
and stability. Office issued a new warn- Premier William Lai in parlia- scope war games in hopes government contacts with
China is attempting to ing to Taipei on Thursday ment that he's a "Taiwan- of intimidating Taiwan for Taiwan, saying that violates
"pressure and harass Tai- against taking further steps ese independence work- political purposes. U.S. commitments not to
wan and seek to raise ten- toward formal indepen- er," adding that Taiwan is Beijing's hostility makes "the restore formal exchanges
sions between the sides dence. a sovereign, independent hugest mockery" of its as- severed when Washington
and in the region," the "Taiwan independence nation. Ma offered no de- sertion of a spiritual con- switched diplomatic rec-
Cabinet-level Mainland separatist activities pose tails. nection between people ognition from Taipei to Bei-
Affairs Council said on its the biggest actual threat to China claims Taiwan as its from the two sides, it said. jing in 1979.
website. peace and stability in the own territory and says the Chinese state media said Ties have also been roiled
"Taiwan's people are very Taiwan Strait," spokesman two sides, which separat- the single-day drills off by U.S. plans to provide Tai-
clear about this and will not Ma Xiaoguang was quot- ed during the Chinese civil China's southeast coast wan with submarine manu-
accept it. We are deter- ed as saying. "Any plots war in 1949, must eventu- featured an air unit of the facturing technology and
mined in our defense of our seeking to separate Taiwan ally be united, by force People's Liberation Army the appointment of hawk-
nation's sovereignty and from China are doomed to if necessary. The Taiwan- ground forces. The PLA ish U.S. National Security
dignity and will absolutely failure." ese statement referred to said the exercise involved Adviser John Bolton.q