China’s show of military might, following US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei, should be drawing to a close, at least according to Beijing’s official Aug. 7 announcement of the end of Chinese military exercises.
However, the Chinese military exercises and live fires that have taken place in the Taiwan area over the past 24 hours have become a turning point in the development of events not only for quantitative but also for geographical reasons, since for the first time in history such Chinese operations were carried out so close not only to Taiwanese shores, but also to some islands to the west of Japan, it is claimed.
At the same time, the opinion is expressed that these universities mark the beginning of a new, more aggressive phase in Beijing’s relations with Taiwan and other US allies in the region (see Japan and others).
Over the past five days, China has sent fighter jets and drones to areas near Taiwan and islands west of Japan.
Red color indicates alleged “violations” of the median line and Taiwan air defense identification zone by Chinese aircraft / source: New York Times
At least 105 Chinese fighter jets and other types of aircraft were involved in these “violations” according to Taiwanese forces.
At the same time, it is emphasized that the number of these “violations” is characterized as “unprecedented” even for a region like Taiwan, which has experienced tension in the past.
However, over the past 24 hours, Japan has also come forward with complaints about Chinese “provocations.”
Red indicates Chinese drone flights over Japan’s EEZ / source: New York Times.
Japan’s Defense Ministry reported Chinese military drone flights near Miyako-Jima, one of Japan’s westernmost islands, on August 4. Tokyo said earlier this week that at least five Chinese missiles fell in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
The red course of Chinese missiles and their points of impact / source: New York Times
The Chinese military, for its part, says the military exercises conducted these days in northern, eastern and southwestern Taiwan were designed to test their ability to conduct land and sea offensive operations.
However, as noted, these live-fire military gyms may also signal a new pattern of more regular and more aggressive “violations” from Beijing.
Recall that at least 11 Chinese missiles reportedly fell into the seas north, south and east of Taiwan last Thursday, August 4, with the Chinese military even saying that their shots “hit the target accurately” and Japan, on the other hand, is talking about the first time in history that Chinese missiles have landed in its own exclusive economic zone.
According to the New York Times
Source: Kathimerini
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