Beijing on Saturday resumed some of its biggest military drills in Taiwan – drills seen as practice for a blockade and eventual invasion of the island. Taipei said it had observed “many” Chinese planes and ships operating in the Taiwan Strait, believing they were simulating an attack on the self-ruled republic’s main island. “Multiple batches of communist planes and ships conducting activities around the Taiwan Straits, some of which crossed the median line,” the defense ministry said, referring to an unofficial demarcation crossing the Taiwan Strait, which Beijing does not recognize . Beijing announced it will hold a live-fire drill in a southern part of the Yellow Sea – located between China and the Korean peninsula – from Saturday to August 15. China’s state broadcaster CCTV reported that Chinese missiles flew directly over Taiwan during the exercises – a major escalation if confirmed. Taipei remained defiant, insisting it will not be deceived by its “bad neighbor”. The scale and intensity of China’s exercises have sparked outrage in the US and other democracies, with the White House summoning China’s ambassador to Washington on Friday to reprimand him over Beijing’s actions. Relations between the two superpowers have been strained since the US House speaker’s trip to self-ruled Taiwan, which China claims as its territory. Beijing’s retaliatory decision to withdraw from hard-won cooperation on climate change has fueled wider fears about the future of the planet. US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the decision was “fundamentally irresponsible”. “They’re actually punishing the entire world because the climate crisis knows no geographic boundaries and borders,” Kirby said. “The world’s biggest polluter is now refusing to take critical steps necessary to combat the climate crisis.” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the two superpowers must continue to work together for the sake of the world. “For the secretary-general, there is no way to solve the world’s most pressing problems without effective dialogue and cooperation between the two countries,” Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. But as tensions over Taiwan have risen to their highest level in 30 years with an increased risk of military conflict, experts told AFP that the latest downturn in relations between the two superpowers could be deep and long-lasting. “The relationship is in a very bad place right now,” said Bonnie Glaser, a China specialist at the German Marshall Fund. Friday’s suspension of bilateral military and maritime dialogue while China continues its military exercises was “particularly concerning,” he said. “We don’t know what else they’re going to do,” he said. “We just don’t know if this is just a temporary thing.” John Culver, a former CIA analyst for Asia, told a panel hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies that Beijing’s main goal with its military exercises was to change that status quo. “I think this is the new normal,” Culver said. “The Chinese want to show … that the speaker’s visit crossed the line.”
