Taiwan: US hits out at ’irresponsible’ China amid attack rehearsal claims

The United States has accused Beijing of "provocative" and "irresponsible" actions after Taiwan said China rehearsed an attack on the island.

The White House said Beijing was attempting to "change the status quo" over Taiwan.

The heightened tensions follow a trip to Taiwan by a US delegation led by senior Democrat Nancy Pelosi, reports BBC

China views the visit as a challenge to its claims of sovereignty over Taiwan, which sees itself as distinct.

Taiwan's defence ministry said Chinese ships and planes carried out missions in the Taiwan Strait on Saturday, with some crossing the median line - an unofficial buffer separating the two sides. Taiwanese fighter jets were scrambled to warn them away.

The Taiwan military said the exercises were a simulated attack on the island.

Beijing hasn't commented on the latest exercises, but is expected to continue military drills in the air and seas around Taiwan until Sunday.

Washington has accused China of escalating tensions.

"These activities are a significant escalation in China's efforts to change the status quo. They are provocative, irresponsible and raise the risk of miscalculation," a White House spokesperson said.

"They are also at odds with our long-standing goal of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, which is what the world expects."

China said Ms Pelosi's visit "seriously threatened" peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province that will eventually be under Beijing's control. However, Taiwan is a self-ruled island that sees itself as distinct from the mainland.

But any hint of recognition of this by world leaders enrages China. It announced on Friday that sanctions have been placed on Ms Pelosi and her family over the visit.

Beijing also announced it was halting cooperation with the US in several key areas including climate change, military talks and efforts to combat international crime.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused China of taking "irresponsible steps" by blocking key communication channels with Washington.

Ms Pelosi - a long-time China critic and the highest-ranking US politician to travel to the island in 25 years - arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday, despite Beijing's warnings.

During her visit, Ms Pelosi said that "the world faces a choice between autocracy and democracy".

AP/UNB adds:

Taiwan said Saturday that China’s military drills appear to simulate an attack on the self-ruled island, after multiple Chinese warships and aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait following U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei that infuriated Beijing.

Taiwan's armed forces issued an alert, dispatched air and naval patrols around the island, and activated land-based missile systems in response to the Chinese exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said. As of 5 p.m., 20 Chinese aircraft and 14 ships continued to carry out sea and air exercises around the Taiwan Strait, it said.

The ministry said that zones declared by China as no-go areas during the exercises for other ships and aircraft had “seriously damaged the peace." It emphasized that Taiwan's military does not seek war, but would prepare and respond for it accordingly.

China's Ministry of Defense said in a statement Saturday that it had carried out military exercises as planned in the sea and airspaces to the north, southwest, and east of Taiwan, with a focus on “testing the capabilities” of its land strike and sea assault systems.

China launched live-fire military drills following Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan earlier this week, saying it violated the “one-China” policy. China sees the island as a breakaway province to be annexed by force if necessary, and considers visits to Taiwan by foreign officials as recognizing its sovereignty.

Taiwan's army also said it detected four unmanned aerial vehicles flying in the vicinity of the offshore county of Kinmen on Friday night and fired warning flares in response.

The four drones, which Taiwan believed were Chinese, were spotted over waters around the Kinmen island group and the nearby Lieyu Island and Beiding islet, according to Taiwan’s Kinmen Defense Command.

Kinmen, also known as Quemoy, is a group of islands only 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) east of the Chinese coastal city of Xiamen in Fujian province in the Taiwan Strait, which divides the two sides that split amid civil war in 1949.

“Our government & military are closely monitoring China’s military exercises & information warfare operations, ready to respond as necessary,” Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen said in a tweet.

“I call on the international community to support democratic Taiwan & halt any escalation of the regional security situation,” she added.