China launched “actual combat” drills near the Taiwan Strait when a senior US official visits Taiwan, which Beijing claims to be a separatist region.
Chinese fighter jets appeared in Taiwanese airspace from four directions, Taipei media reports said as Beijing launched airspace and maritime drills near the autonomous island on Friday, prompting Taiwan to launch its own planes. of combat.
The drills come as Keith Krach, US Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and Environment, arrived in Taiwan on Thursday night and will attend the memorial service for former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui on Saturday.
Krach’s visit comes a month after US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar’s trip to Taiwan as Washington and Taipei tighten ties, much to Beijing’s anger.
Krach and Azar are two of the highest-ranking US officials to visit Taiwan in decades.
In Beijing, Defense Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said “those who play with fire will be burned” when he announced the drills on Friday, adding that the exercises were a “necessary move aimed at the current situation in the Strait of Taiwan to safeguard national sovereignty. ” and territorial integrity ”.
He accused the United States and Taiwan of “intensifying collusion, frequently causing unrest” without referring directly to Krach’s ongoing visit.
Reiterating that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, the Chinese media quoted Ren as saying that the Taiwan issue is purely China’s internal matter and does not allow outside interference.
Commenting on Krach’s visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Friday that China is determined to thwart foreign interference and secessionist acts in Taiwan.
During his visit, Krach will attend the memorial service for former Taiwanese leader Lee, known as the “godfather of Taiwan secessionism” on the mainland.
The US official is scheduled to meet Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen for dinner at her official residence on Friday night.
Read also:‘Encouraging Separatist Forces’: China Strongly Opposes US Envoy Visit To Taiwan
Beijing has stepped up military activity near Taiwan in recent months and has conducted several exercises in the region.
In June, Taipei scrambled planes in response to warn planes from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force, which had deployed fighter jets in the Taiwan Strait hours after a US transport plane flew over the island.
In August, Beijing held exercises near the island, which coincided with the visit of Health Secretary Azar.
The United States is also preparing to sell seven tranches of weapons systems to Taiwan, CNN reported Thursday, citing a US official.
The United States, like India and most other countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, although the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act allows Washington to sell arms to the island.
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