Chinese military rehearses full ‘blockade’ of Taiwan

China launched army, navy, air and rocket forces around Taiwan and labelled the Taiwanese president a ‘parasite’ in a show of military intimation and propaganda denounced by Taipei.

A handout photo released by the Taiwan Defence Ministry on Tuesday shows the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong sailing in waters off Taiwan. Picture: Handout/Taiwan Defence Ministry/AFP

China launched army, navy, air and rocket forces around Taiwan on Tuesday and labelled the Taiwanese president a “parasite” in a show of military intimation and bombastic propaganda denounced by Taipei.

Taiwan dispatched its own aircraft and ships, and deployed land-based missile systems, in response to the drills and accused Beijing of being the world’s “biggest troublemaker”.

The latest People’s Liberation Army drills come after Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te called China a “foreign hostile force” last month, enraging Beijing which insists democratic Taiwan is part of its territory.

In a video accompanying the PLA Eastern Theatre Command’s announcement of the drills it depicted the Taiwanese president as a cartoon bug held by a pair of chopsticks above a burning Taiwan. The same propaganda video called Mr Lai a “parasite”.

The PLA said the drills were a rehearsal for a blockade of the island. “The focus is on exercises such as combat readiness patrols at sea and in the air, seizing comprehensive control, striking maritime and land targets, and imposing blockade controls on key areas and routes,” the Eastern Theatre Command said in a statement.

China had deployed 19 warships around the island, including the Shandong aircraft carrier group, Taiwan’s defence ministry said.

Two people briefed on the situation told the Financial Times newspaper that the Shandong had approached waters 24 nautical miles off Taiwan’s coast, the closest it has ever been to the Taiwanese mainland.

China’s coast guard on Tuesday said it also conducted “law enforcement patrols” around the island.

The drills took place after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth left the region following visits to Japan and the Philippines, where he criticised China and said Japan was “indispensable” for tackling Chinese aggression.

It also came after reports of a memo recently sent by Mr Hegseth to staff in the US Defence department that said denying a Chinese attack of Taiwan was now the centrepiece of force planning in the Trump administration.

“China is the Department’s sole pacing threat, and denial of a Chinese fait accompli seizure of Taiwan — while simultaneously defending the U.S. homeland is the Department’s sole pacing scenario,” Mr Hegseth wrote, according to the Washington Post.

A Taiwan Coast Guard ship (front) and a Chinese Coast Guard ship sailing in waters off the Matsu Islands in Taiwan. Picture: Handout/Taiwan Coast Guard/AFP

A senior Taiwan security official told Reuters, citing internal assessments, that Beijing wanted to avoid any “perceived confrontation” with Washington prior to US-China trade talks, so had lashed out at Taipei.

“Taiwan is their best excuse. That’s why they chose to launch such military drills as soon as the US Defence Secretary left Asia,” the official said.

Taiwan’s Presidential Office “strongly condemned” China’s actions, and Premier Cho Jung-tai said “resorting to displays of military force is not what modern, progressive societies should pursue”.

This week’s drills are the biggest since February, when Taipei said that China staged a “live-fire” combat drill with aircraft and warships in an area about 40 nautical miles (74km) off the island’s south.

Taiwan’s military responded by sending forces to “monitor, alert and respond appropriately” – though officials in Taiwan have said no actual firing took place.

Beijing at the time rejected “pure hype” from Taiwan over what it called “routine training”.

China has carried out multiple drills around the island in recent years, often described as rehearsals for a blockade and seizure of the territory.

Analysts have speculated that China was more likely to attempt a blockade of Taiwan than launch an all-out invasion, which was riskier and would require a huge military deployment.

Taiwan is a potential flashpoint for conflict between China and the US, which is the island’s most important backer and biggest arms supplier.

While the United States is legally bound to provide arms to Taiwan – which Beijing opposes – Washington has long maintained “strategic ambiguity” when it comes to whether it would deploy its military to defend it from a Chinese attack.

There have been concerns in Taiwan about US President Donald Trump’s willingness to protect the island. He said last month that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would be “catastrophic”.

With AFP