Taiwan, which Beijing has claimed for decades to want to reabsorb by hook or by crook, said on Tuesday that it was facing a massive naval deployment from China near its waters, larger than the one launched in August 2022 in response to Nancy’s visit to Taipei. Pelosi, then Speaker of the US House of Representatives.
A senior security official said that “nearly 90” warships, an unprecedented level, were deployed in the waters of the East and South China Seas, as well as in the Taiwan Strait which separates the island from the mainland. Traveling to Tokyo, the American Secretary of State for Defense, Lloyd Austin, denounced Chinese behavior around the island. “Now we are clear-eyed about the challenges for peace and stability in this region (Asia-Pacific) and in the world. This includes coercive behavior by the People’s Republic of China in the East and South China Seas and elsewhere in the region,” Austin said.
These latest Chinese deployments come days after the end of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s Pacific tour, which sparked strong protests from Beijing. They also come the day after China imposed vast air restrictions off its east coast. In response, the Taiwanese authorities announced that they would initiate “combat preparation maneuvers” and place their armed forces on “high” alert. Many geopolitical analysts working on the Far East say they are almost certain of an attempted invasion of Taiwan in 2027, for the centenary of the creation of the Chinese National Liberation Army, or even before…
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