Taiwan: China's military exercises violate the island's waters and endanger the international order
Taiwan's Ministry of Defense announced today, Wednesday, that Chinese military exercises announced by Beijing in response to the visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taipei, violate the territorial waters of the island.
"Some sectors of China's maneuvers overlap with Taiwan's territorial waters, which is an irrational act aimed at challenging the international order," Taiwan Defense Ministry spokesman Sun Li-fang told a press conference.
Pelosi arrived in Taiwan late Tuesday on a visit to the highest US official to go to the island since the visit of her predecessor Newt Gingrich in 1997, amid threats from China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory.
The spokesman for the Taiwan Defense Ministry came shortly after a ministry statement confirmed Wednesday that the Chinese military exercises threaten the main ports and urban areas on the island, and promised to strengthen defenses and respond firmly.
The ministry said the exercises constituted an attempt to unilaterally threaten Taiwan's ports and undermine regional peace and stability.
Chinese leaders expressed their anger at the US House Speaker's visit to Taiwan, which China considers part of its territory.
Beijing announced a series of live-fire military exercises around the island in response to the visit.
The Chinese leadership said it would conduct "joint naval and air exercises in the northern, southwestern and southeastern sea and airspace."
These exercises will include long-range firing with live ammunition in the Taiwan Strait, which separates the island from mainland China.
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