US sees Chinese 'provocations' in military drills around Taiwan

The U.S. State Department accused China of “military provocations” for staging expansive military exercises around Taiwan in the wake of the President Lai Ching-te’s inauguration.

Taiwan’s defense ministry said 111 Chinese aircraft and dozens of naval vessels surrounded the self-ruled island over the past two days. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the U.S. is “deeply concerned.”

“We strongly urge Beijing to act with restraint,” he said in a statement Saturday. “Using a normal, routine, and democratic transition as an excuse for military provocations risks escalation and erodes longstanding norms that for decades have maintained peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

Beiijng has signaled displeasure with the new government in Taipei, accusing Lai of seeking independence and destabilizing the region. China’s drills were the biggest around Taiwan in a year.

State-run CCTV reported Saturday that the Chinese army has “successfully completed all the missions” directed against Taiwan.

The drills started a “new era of normalized practices,” Zhang Chi, associate professor of the China People’s Liberation Army National Defense University, said in an interview with CCTV. “The PLA will stake a step forward each time the Taiwanese separatists make a provocative act,” Zhang said.

In Washington, the Pentagon said it “remains confident in current U.S. force posture and operations in the Indo-Pacific region” and has “communicated our concerns” about the Chinese exercises.

The exercises were intended to “serve as a strong punishment for the separatist acts of ‘Taiwan independence’ forces,” China’s Xinhua News Agency reported, citing a military spokesman.

“China’s recent unilateral military provocations have not only undermined the status quo of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, but also openly provoked the international order, and aroused serious concern and condemnation from the international community,” Taiwan presidential spokesperson Karen Kuo said in a statement Saturday. Taipei calls on China to “shoulder global responsibility with Taiwan and work to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and the region,” she said.

The drills add to the complications Lai faces, among them a divisive campaign by rival parliamentarians to rein in the president’s powers. The opposition is pushing through changes to the law that would expand lawmakers’ ability to investigate the government, bringing thousands of people on to the streets in protest.

Tens of thousands of people gathered outside the legislature in Taipei on Friday night to rally against the bill, while smaller demonstrations were reported in other cities around the island of 23 million people.

The opposition Kuomintang, China’s preferred negotiating partner in the chipmaking hub, had pushed to finalize the amendments as early as Friday.

The president’s party was able to slow the passage of the bill, ensuring it wasn’t approved before the meeting adjourned around 11:30 p.m. local time. Crowds are expected to gather again Tuesday when the parliament session on the bill is scheduled to resume. There weren’t any protests outside the legislature on Saturday.

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(With assistance from Kathy Chen, Samson Ellis, Debby Wu and Philip Glamann.)