DEFENSE/Military drill highlights China's 'two-pronged' Taiwan strategy: MAC

Taipei, Dec. 29 (CNA) The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said Monday that China's launch of a live-fire drill around Taiwan one day after a forum that promoted exchanges between two major cities on both sides was a clear reflection of Beijing's "two-pronged" approach toward Taiwan.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) on Monday launched a new series of military exercises around Taiwan, which it said were meant to serve as a "stern warning to 'Taiwan Independence' separatist forces."

Code-named Justice Mission 2025, the exercises are being conducted in the Taiwan Strait and in areas north, southwest, southeast, and east of Taiwan, focusing on "sea-air combat readiness patrol, joint seizure of comprehensive superiority, blockade of key ports and areas, as well as all-dimensional deterrence outside the island chain," a senior PLA officer said in a statement released Monday.

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In response, Taiwan's MAC noted that the military exercises were launched one day after the Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum, clearly indicating that China was engaging in "a carefully orchestrated two-pronged strategy."

"On one hand, it talks about getting closer, while on the other it resorts to military intimidation," the MAC said.

Beijing is a "troublemaker" and a threat to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, the MAC said, adding that the PLA's show of force was unacceptable to the people of Taiwan and to the international community.

The Twin-City Forum is an annual event that has been held since 2010 to promote city-to-city exchanges between Taipei and Shanghai, with the two cities alternating as host.

At the 16th edition of the forum on Saturday and Sunday, host Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng (龔正) said exchanges between the two city governments could bring "a real sense of gain, happiness and security" to the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, who are "bound by blood ties" and share "a common destiny."

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), who led a 120-member delegation to the forum, said Sunday that he hoped the Taiwan Strait would come to be associated with "peace and prosperity," rather than "crashing waves and howling winds."

He did not elaborate on what he meant by "crashing waves and howling winds," but it was seen as a likely reference to the heightened cross-strait tensions and scant official communication between the central governments on the two sides since 2016, when Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party returned to power.

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Speaking to reporters in Taipei on Monday after the PLA announcement, Chiang repeated the phrase, saying he held a "very firm and consistent" stance of supporting "dialogue, not confrontation" and hoped for "peace and prosperity," not "crashing waves and howling winds."

"Those in government have a responsibility to reduce risks, manage crises, and safeguard the people's safety," he said, adding that he condemned "any actions that would escalate regional tensions."