China defends military drills, says Taiwan independence efforts doomed to fail

Record ID: 1987537

  • Title: China defends military drills, says Taiwan independence efforts doomed to fail
  • Date: 1st April 2025
  • Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (APRIL 1, 2025) (REUTERS) CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON GUO JIAKUN WALKING INTO CONFERENCE ROOM JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON, GUO JIAKUN, SAYING: "China’s joint military exercises serve as a serious warning and a strong deterrent against separatist forces advocating “Taiwan independence.” They are le
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Air Force Beijing China Drills Foreign Affairs Lai Ching-Te MOFA Military Ministry Navy Spokesperson Taipei Taiwan
  • Location: BEIJING, CHINA
  • City: BEIJING, CHINA
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Asia / Pacific,Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA001322601042025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Tuesday (April 1) that China’s military exercises near Taiwan are legitimate and necessary.
    China began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday as a "stern warning" against separatism, as Taiwan sent warships to respond to China's navy approaching its coast.
    The exercises around the democratically governed island, which China views as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring under its control, come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month.
    China detests Lai as a "separatist," and in a video accompanying the Eastern Theatre Command's announcement of the drills depicted him as cartoon bug held by a pair of chopsticks above a burning Taiwan, calling him in English a "parasite."
    (Production; Alessandro Diviggiano; Wang Shubing)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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