China vows military operations around Taiwan in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit
- Joint naval and air force exercises under way skirting island’s coastline and airspace to its north, southwest and southeast, says People’s Liberation Army spokesman
- Clear upgrade in response by Chinese military compared to previous moves likely to continue in future, observers add
The response also consisted of long-distance, live-fire artillery shooting in the Taiwan Strait as well as conventional-headed missile test firings in the waters east of the island.
“This action is a solemn deterrent against the recent major escalation of the negative actions of the United States on the Taiwan issue, and a serious warning to the Taiwanese forces seeking independence,” said Shi Yi, spokesman of the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command, whose purview includes the Taiwan Strait and is carrying out the exercises.
In addition, the PLA demarcated six no-entry zones around the island for civilian ships and planes, warning it could conduct “important military exercises with live-fire shooting” in these areas from 12pm Thursday to 12pm Sunday.