Vice President William Lai is the frontrunner in next year’s Taiwanese presidential election. CARLOS GARCIA RAWLINS / REUTERS
A stopover in the United States by the island’s vice-president, William Lai, angered Beijing, which considers the island to be one of its provinces.
China launched military maneuvers around Taiwan on Saturday August 19 as a “serious warning”according to state media, after protesting a stopover in the United States by the island’s vice president, William Lai. “The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Eastern Area Command on Saturday launched joint air and sea patrols and navy and air force military drills around the island of Taiwan.”wrote the official New China agency, quoting army spokesman Shi Yi.
These maneuvers are intended to test the ability of Chinese ships and aircraft “to take control of air and sea space” and to fight “under real conditions”, specifies the official article. They should also serve “stern warnings to the collusion of the separatists” taiwan separatists “with foreign elements and their provocations”the agency added.
Taiwan strongly condemned Beijing’s military maneuvers on Saturday. Taipei Ministry of Defense “Strongly condemns this irrational and provocative behavior, and will send appropriate forces to respond to it (…) in order to defend Taiwan’s freedom, democracy and sovereignty”the institution said in a statement.
Beijing’s Black Beast
William Lai, favorite in next year’s Taiwanese presidential election, who called himself a“pragmatic independentist”, is Beijing’s pet peeve. The Harvard-educated doctor-turned-politician stopped by New York and San Francisco after a trip to Paraguay, one of the few nations that officially recognize Taiwan.
The trip has angered China, which regards Taiwan as one of its provinces and opposes any official contact between Taiwan and Western countries – which would legitimize Taiwanese authorities and undermine its claims of sovereignty over the island. . Washington had called for calm about the trip of William Lai, who according to Taiwanese authorities was only “transit” American soil before traveling to Paraguay to attend the inauguration of President-elect Santiago Peña.
But on Saturday, an official from the Chinese Communist Party office in charge of Taiwan issues said “strongly condemned” Lai’s journey, calling it a “new provocation” in view of “strengthen collusion with the United States”according to New China. “The last “stopover” by Mr. Lai (…) was a camouflage he used to sell Taiwan’s interests in order to gain gains in local elections through dishonest maneuvers”the official said, according to the same article. “Mr. Lai’s actions have proven that he is a real troublemaker who will push Taiwan to the brink of war and cause serious problems for Taiwan compatriots”continues the press release.
“Critical Moment”
William Lai received the nomination from the Democratic Progressive Party to run for president in 2024 and succeed President Tsai Ing-wen, whose second term will end then. During a lunch in New York last Sunday, William Lai, reaffirmed his intention to maintain the“pledge to resist annexation or encroachment on [la] sovereignty” from Taiwan. “At this critical moment, we promise again here and now that no matter how great the authoritarian threat to Taiwan, we will never be afraid and we will never back down.” he assured an audience including representatives of the American Institute in Taiwan which, de facto, acts as the US embassy on the island.
Beijing-Taipei relations soured in 2016 with the arrival of Tsai Ing-wen as president, with Beijing intensifying political and military pressure on the archipelago in recent years. Military planes regularly make incursions into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (Adiz). In April, as Tsai Ing-wen met with US Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy, China held three days of military exercises simulating a blockade of Taiwan.