US warship sails through Taiwan Strait on Tiananmen Square anniversary
- Seventh such transit this year by US navy as it continues its active presence in the region
- Mission comes a day after China’s state television shows Chinese tanks storming beaches in an apparent warning to Taiwan
The US Pacific Fleet also confirmed the transit by USS Russell, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, via its Facebook page, as the United States continued its increased operations through the strait, which have triggered anger in Beijing and added to tensions with Washington.
It comes at a time when mainland China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is stepping up drills aimed at the self-ruled Taiwan.
The PLA is holding more amphibious landing and naval drills, which are seen as targeting Taiwan.
On Wednesday, state-run CCTV reported that the PLA 73rd Group Army had conducted live-fire and landing drills, showing amphibious tanks storming beaches in a coordinated attack under rough sea conditions.
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In a separate report, CCTV said the PLA 74th Group Army had used a large civilian cargo ship to transport more than 50 tanks, armoured vehicles and infantry fighting vehicles across the sea.
The 73rd and 74th groups, based respectively in the coastal provinces of Fujian and Guangdong, are seen as the main forces for landing missions on Taiwan.
Senior Chinese officials have said Beijing still preferred peaceful unification with Taiwan, which it considers to be a breakaway province.
However, Li Zuocheng, a top PLA general, said that taking Taiwan by force was an option for Beijing and it would take steps to “resolutely smash” separatist moves made by Taiwan.
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He said collusion between Taiwan independence forces and foreign forces posed a “great and realistic threat” to the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.
Hong Kong-based military commentator Song Zhongping said that assault landing was the core part of the military preparations needed to try to unify Taiwan with the mainland, and required the PLA to develop the capability.
“If military action is chosen to unify Taiwan, landing capability is not just a psychological deterrent but will turn out to be an actual action,” he said.
“For any army in any country, this is a relatively difficult part of military training. It is necessary to increase training in this area to gain better capabilities, and only by doing this would we be able to ensure success in a future island seizure exercise.”
Additional reporting by Kristin Huang
