Defense Ministry Reports Dozens of PLA Ships, Aircraft on First Day of Drill

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwan’s defense ministry reported dozens of Chinese ships, aircraft, and drones near the country's main island as Beijing initiates its “Justice Mission 2025” military drills, set to begin Tuesday. The exercises come a day after President Lai Ching-te called for increased defense spending.

Transcript

00:00Taiwan's Air Force reacts to a surprise Chinese military drill on Monday morning.

00:17China's People's Liberation Army has designated five restricted zones around Taiwan as part of

00:23drills it's calling Justice Mission 2025. They later added two more. Beijing says live fire

00:29exercises will start Tuesday morning in several areas around Taiwan including off the port of

00:35Geelong in the north. It's the fourth round of Chinese drills targeting Taiwan since President

00:40Lai Qingde took office last May and the sixth since then U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited in

00:472022. Taiwan is condemning the move as an irrational provocation.

00:59China's Foreign Ministry said that it is resolute in its determination to defend national sovereignty

01:15and any act of provocation regarding Taiwan would be met with a firm counter-attack. This comes a day

01:22after Lai called for increased investment in defense amid rising threats from China during

01:27a TV interview.

01:42Taipei Mayor Jiang Wan-an also condemned the drills after returning from the Shanghai Taipei City Forum,

01:48one of the only channels that currently exists for cross-strait communication.

01:59Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, which governs relations with China,

02:03said that the surprise drills right after the Twin Cities Forum run counter to the spirit of peace

02:08through dialogue that the meeting promoted, saying the Chinese Communist Party proclaims both sides of

02:13the strait belong to one family, but they point their swords at Taiwan. The latest drills come amid rising

02:19regional tensions between China and Japan, and just days after the U.S. announced its biggest ever weapons

02:26deal for Taiwan. With Beijing once again using military exercises to push its claim over Taiwan,

02:32Taipei will have to find ways to respond to the growing pressure.

02:35Hank Xu, Alex Chen, Larry Isiano, and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.

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