(Reuters) – Taiwan’s military mobilised its forces and said it was confident it could protect the island after China started two days of “punishment” drills around Taiwan on Thursday in what it said was a response to “separatist acts”.
Here are some reactions to the military drills:
WU XINBO, DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRE FOR AMERICAN STUDIES AT FUDAN UNIVERSITY IN SHANGHAI:
“The drills encircling the island, is giving him (Taiwan’s new President Lai Ching-te) a blow on the head in order to shock and awe Lai and Taiwan independence forces on the island. This is also certainly a blow to the U.S.
This year’s Joint Sword-2024A drills are very strong in intensity, showing that the mainland is willing to increase its deterrence towards Taiwan independence forces and strengthen its capability to mould the Taiwan Strait situation in response to the domestic changes in Taiwan. I believe that the shock and awe military drills from today onwards will be a routine occurrence.”
LIEUTENANT GENERAL STEPHEN SKLENKA, DEPUTY COMMANDER US INDO PACIFIC COMMAND, IN CANBERRA:
“The normalisation of abnormal actions, that’s what’s happening. Just because we expect that behaviour doesn’t mean we shouldn’t condemn it. We need to condemn it publicly and it needs to come from us but it also needs to come from nations in the region … it is far more powerful when it comes from nations in this region. It is concerning but I also believe in my heart of hearts that conflict between our two nations is not inevitable and its not a foregone conclusion.”
(Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Michael Perry. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
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