China launches military drills around Taiwan, calls its president a 'parasite'

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Apr 01, 2025 7:08 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

China staged subject drills disconnected Taiwan's north, southbound and eastbound coasts connected Tuesday arsenic a "stern warning" against separatism and called Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te a "parasite," arsenic Taiwan sent warships to respond to China's navy approaching its shores.

The exercises, which China has not formally named dissimilar warfare games past year, are happening aft a emergence successful Chinese rhetoric against Lai and travel connected the heels of U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's Asia visit, during which helium repeatedly criticized Beijing.

China's subject deployed ships, craft and artillery to practise blockading the island, strikes connected crushed and maritime targets, and aerial interception to "test forces' co-ordination successful combat," Beijing's Eastern Theatre Command said successful a statement.

This is not the archetypal clip China has either simulated an onslaught oregon enactment Taiwan nether a lockdown. Last May, 3 days aft Lai's inauguration, Chinese forces staged warfare games to simulate seizing afloat power of areas westbound of the alleged archetypal land concatenation and conducted live-fire rocket exercises.

China considers democratically governed Taiwan arsenic its ain territory and detests Lai arsenic a "separatist." In a video accompanying its drill announcement, the Eastern Theatre Command called him a "parasite" successful English and depicted him arsenic a greenish bug held by chopsticks implicit a burning Taiwan.

Taiwan's authorities condemned the drills, with the statesmanlike bureau saying China was "widely recognized by the planetary assemblage arsenic a troublemaker" and that the authorities has the assurance and quality to support itself.

Taiwan's authorities rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying lone the island's radical tin determine their future.

Two elder Taiwan officials told Reuters that much than 10 Chinese subject ships had approached adjacent to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44 km) contiguous portion and Taiwan sent its ain warships to respond.

Taiwan has not detected immoderate unrecorded occurrence by the Chinese military, the officials said.

China's overseas ministry said the drills "are morganatic and indispensable actions to support nationalist sovereignty and safeguard nationalist unity."

"China's reunification is an unstoppable inclination -- it volition happen, and it indispensable happen" Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson, said astatine a regular quality league connected Tuesday.

Taiwan dispatches warships

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said successful a connection that China's Shandong craft bearer radical had entered the island's effect country connected Monday, adding that it had dispatched subject craft and ships and activated land-based rocket systems successful response.

The drills took spot aft Hegseth near the portion pursuing visits to Japan and the Philippines, wherever helium criticized China and said Japan was "indispensable" for tackling Chinese aggression.

A elder Taiwan information authoritative told Reuters, citing interior assessments, that Beijing needed to debar immoderate "perceived confrontation" with Washington anterior to the U.S.-China commercialized talks, and frankincense Taiwan has go a pretext.

"Taiwan is their champion excuse. That's wherefore they chose to motorboat specified subject drills arsenic soon arsenic the U.S. defence caput near Asia," the authoritative said.

The de facto U.S. embassy, the American Institute successful Taiwan, said the United States volition proceed to enactment the island.

"Once again, China has shown that it is not a liable histrion and has nary occupation putting the region's information and prosperity astatine risk," a spokesperson said successful a statement.

'Closing in'

China's subject released a bid of propaganda videos successful speedy succession aft the drill announcement, depicting Chinese warships and combatant jets encircling Taiwan, Taipei being aimed astatine from supra and a barrage of missiles firing into the entity earlier exploding connected their targets.

A video of a poster accompanying the drills titled "Closing In," and showing Chinese forces surrounding the island, was released connected the Eastern Theatre Command's Weibo.

This was followed by a video titled "Shell," depicting President Lai arsenic a greenish cartoon bug spawning parasites crossed the island, connected the Eastern Theatre Command's WeChat page.

"Parasite poisoning Taiwan island. Parasite hollowing Island out. Parasite courting eventual destruction," the animation said.

Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo said specified rhetoric was not conducive to bid and "shows their provocative character."

A 3rd video, "Subdue Demons and Vanquish Evils," featured Sun Wukong, the magical monkey king from the Ming Dynasty epic "Journey to the West" arsenic helium is depicted successful the "Black Myth: Wukong" deed video game.

It opens with the video's rubric flashing crossed the surface and the Chinese mythical warrior riding connected clouds earlier cutting to footage of Chinese combatant jets.

A 4th poster, released aboriginal successful the time and titled "Enveloping Advance," had the Chinese characters of its rubric covering the land and ships and bomber craft positioned to its northwest and southeast.

Taiwan's Koo told reporters the PLA should absorption archetypal connected resolving its issues with corruption alternatively of destroying bid and stableness successful the region.

China's subject has undergone a sweeping anti-corruption purge implicit the past fewer years, which saw erstwhile Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu ousted successful October 2024.

China's defence ministry did not instantly respond to a petition for remark connected Koo's remarks.

The Taiwan information source, citing interior quality assessments, said China was trying to engaged its subject with exercises arsenic a mode of distracting and stopping its soldiers from discussing the corruption crackdown amongst themselves connected base.

China's seashore defender said it was besides taking portion successful the drills, saying it was simulating "inspection and capture, interception and detention operations against unwarranted vessels" to amusement its workout of "legitimate jurisdiction" implicit Taiwan.

The Global Times, which is owned by the People's Daily paper of the governing Chinese Communist Party, said the drill had not been fixed a codification sanction to amusement that Chinese subject forces surrounding the land "has go a mean practice," citing Zhang Chi of National Defence University.

"Through a bid of exercises held successful the Taiwan Strait successful caller years, the PLA has powerfully enhanced its quality to hole for warfare and combat battles," the nonfiction connected the paper's Weixin societal media leafage added.