US slams China's military drills near Taiwan as threat to regional stability

The Chinese military exercise near Taiwan exacerbates tensions and puts the regional security at risk, the Trump Administration said Tuesday as Beijing launched large-scale drills around Taiwan.

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“Once again, China’s aggressive military activities and rhetoric toward Taiwan only serve to exacerbate tensions and put the region’s security and the world’s prosperity at risk,” State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.

“In the face of China’s intimidation tactics and destabilising behaviour, the United States’ enduring commitment to our allies and partners, including Taiwan, continues,” she said.

“The United States supports peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and opposes unilateral changes to the status quo, including through force or coercion,” Bruce said.

On Tuesday, the People's Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command launched large joint exercises involving its navy and Air Force around Taiwan.

“It is a stern warning and forceful deterrence against ‘Taiwan Independence’ separatist forces, and it is a legitimate and necessary action to safeguard China’s sovereignty and national unity,” PLA Eastern Theater Command said.

Taiwan described it as reckless and irresponsible. “It came without justification, violates international laws and is totally unacceptable. Democracies need to condemn China for being a troublemaker,” Joseph Wu, secretary-general of Taiwan’s National Security Council, wrote on X.

Meanwhile Senators Chris Van Hollen, John Curtis, and Andy Kim joined Indian American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ranking Member of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and Chinese Communist Party (CCP), to reintroduce the bipartisan Taiwan Allies Fund Act to support Taiwan’s international space and counter CCP coercion.

The Taiwan Allies Fund Act strengthens Taiwan’s global network of friends by authorising USD 120 million over three years to provide foreign assistance to Taiwan’s official and unofficial partners subjected to coercion and pressure from the CCP.

“As the People’s Republic of China works to isolate Taiwan from allies, it’s all the more important that we defend its role within the international community. This bipartisan effort will help protect and strengthen Taiwan’s global relations in the face of Beijing’s coercive tactics, while promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Senator Van Hollen.

“China wants the world to turn a blind eye to its nefarious ambitions with Taiwan. We cannot allow nations to fall prey to China’s pressure campaigns, which is why we’ve introduced bipartisan legislation to counter China’s attempts to silence Taiwan’s allies,” said Senator Curtis. The bill helps countries stand strong in the face of the CCP and strengthen their ties with Taiwan—and aligns with Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s goal of ensuring that any US dollars spent abroad are making Americans more safe, secure, and prosperous, he said.

The Chinese efforts to coerce and isolate Taiwan demand a unified and resolute response from the United States, said Indian American Congressman Ami Bera. “This bipartisan legislation underscores America’s commitment to standing firmly with Taiwan and safeguarding our shared democratic values,” he said.

The CCP’s decades-long campaign to isolate Taiwan jeopardizes our national security and plays into dictators’ desires to control democratic nations’ actions, said Krishnamoorthi. “This bill pushes back on Beijing’s inclination to bully smaller countries and limit Taiwan’s global network of partners. It is essential to ensuring peace and stability not only in the Indo-Pacific but across the globe,” he said.

Taiwan represents an important voice at the table in the international community, and it's critical that the United States stand with them and their partners so that they're not silenced or sidelined,” said Kim.

(Courtesy: www.5wh.com)