Taiwan's President: «We will not back down» despite China's threats

Taiwan «will not back down» in the face of the threat of Chinese weapons, the island's president, Tsai Ing-wen, said today, as Beijing announced a series of military training exercises using live fire on its outskirts amid a visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat.

«Despite deliberately increased military threats, Taiwan will not back down. We will continue to defend democracy,» Ms. Tsai said during an event in Taipei attended by Ms. Pelosi.

Earlier, Taiwan's defence ministry announced that China's drills were threatening ports and key urban areas on the island, promising that defences would be «stepped up» and that there would be a «vigorous» response.

The drills are «an attempt to threaten our major ports and urban centres and to unilaterally undermine peace and stability in the region», the ministry claimed.

The Chinese political leadership makes no secret of its anger at Mrs Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory destined to be «reunited» with the mainland by force if necessary.

Real fire

Beijing announced in response a series of naval and air military training exercises with live fire around the island.

The drills will include the firing of «real long-range fire» in the Taiwan Strait, which separates the island from the mainland.

In some locations, Chinese operations will reach 20 kilometres from the Taiwan coastline, based on coordinates announced by the People's Liberation Army.

Faced with the risk of war breaking out through miscalculation, Taiwanese government officials tried to be decisive and at the same time keep the population calm.

«The Ministry of Defence is closely monitoring the situation, has stepped up its preparations and will react in an appropriate manner at the time it deems appropriate,» he said.

The military will «stay in place and protect national security. We ask the public to remain calm and support the armed forces.».

On Tuesday night, the authorities announced that 21 Chinese military aircraft intruded into the air defence identification zone (or ADIZ, the acronym for air defence identification zone), which is much larger than Taiwan's airspace.

On the other side of the Strait, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced economic sanctions, in particular the suspension of sand exports to Taiwan. This is a key raw material for the manufacture of semiconductors, one of the island's main exports.

For its part, Japan expressed «concern» about Beijing's «targeted military actions» in retaliation for Ms Pelosi's visit, some of which will take place within Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Tokyo «expressed its concern» to Beijing given the «nature of the military activities» which will include «real fire», explained Hirokazu Matsuno, a Japanese government spokesman.

Nancy Pelosi said earlier, in a speech to Taiwan's parliament, that she went «in peace» to the region as a «friend».

«flagrant violation»

«We come as friends to Taiwan, we come with peace in the region,» said Ms Pelosi, the highest-ranking US official to visit the island in 25 years. She praised Taiwan for being «one of the freest countries in the world.».

The 82-year-old Speaker of the House of Representatives, third in line to succeed President Joe Biden if required, had not announced her visit to Taiwan, but it had been the subject of intense speculation for several days and provoked Beijing's reaction before it even happened.

With Ms Pelosi's arrival in Taiwan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry denounced a «flagrant violation» of US commitments to China that «deal a serious blow to the peace and stability of the region».

He called the US ambassador in Beijing, Nicholas Burns, and China's Vice Foreign Minister Shie Fang expressed his country's «strong protest», saying that Ms Pelosi's «initiative» to go to Taiwan «is extremely shocking and the consequences will be very serious», according to the Chinese official news agency New China.

The island of 23 million inhabitants has been administratively independent since the end of the civil war (1949), but Beijing intends to reintegrate it into its territory and opposes any international legitimisation of its government.

«Don't play with fire»

US officials frequently visit the island and Washington is Taiwan's largest arms supplier. But Ms Pelosi's visit was seen as a major challenge by China.

Last week, during the telephone conference between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping, the Chinese president warned the US not to «play with fire».

The previous Speaker of the House of Representatives to visit Taiwan was Newt Greengrich in 1997.

Officially, since 1979, Washington has recognized only one Chinese government, the one in Beijing, although it plays the role of a protector of Taipei.

The US has a policy of «strategic ambiguity», avoiding to clarify whether or not it will defend Taiwan militarily in case of a Chinese invasion, and the White House was quick to reaffirm it after recent statements by Mr Biden that seemed to cast doubt on it.

Russia, an ally of China, yesterday accused the US administration of «destabilising the world» and called Ms Pelosi's visit to Taiwan a «pure provocation».

North Korea, also an ally of China, has expressed its «full support» for it, calling it «foolish interference» in the «internal affairs» of other states by the US and «political and military provocations» that are the ’root cause« of the challenge to »peace and security in the region«, a Pyongyang diplomatic spokesman told the official KCNA news agency.