ALBAWABA - A Chinese government official insisted that the drills conducted around Taiwan and seen as an escalation with the island were meant to test troop combat skills.
"The drills are aimed at testing the joint combat capability of the troops," a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Albawaba in a written reply to an inquiry on the exercises.
The spokesperson maintained that the mock wars were also meant to "resolutely counter the provocative acts of external forces and 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces in collusion."
The statement echoed that of Senior Col. Shi Yi, The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command’s spokesperson.
“The exercise focused on land strikes, sea assaults and other subjects, aiming to test the troops' joint combat capability and resolutely counter the collusive and provocative acts of the external forces and the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” the colonel said in a media statement.
ICYMI: China launches massive sea, air combat exercise, scrambles jets around Taiwanhttps://t.co/VzJMM4WDmO
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The guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93), which sailed through the Taiwan Strait last Thursday was monitored by the troops of the PLA Eastern Theater Command and maintained vigilance throughout the whole course.
But this is considered the second major military exercise in less than a month after the United States passed a defense spending bill that included support for Taipei.
Earlier this week, 57 Chinese military aircraft and four navy ships had been detected operating around Taiwan over the previous 24 hours, according to the island’s defense ministry.
The escalating tensions between China and Taiwan began to surface publicly after a visit made by the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan last year amid China's assurances that it will not abandon Taiwan and the principle of One China.
By Razan Abdelhadi
