In response to Chinese outrage at the meeting between Taiwan's President and the US House Speaker, the PLA launches United Sharp Sword exercises.
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In response to Beijing's outrage over Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California, China has started three days of military drills surrounding Taiwan.
The People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command announced on Saturday that "combat readiness patrols" will continue until April 10 in China, which claims Taiwan as its own and hasn't ruled out using force to further its objectives.
Exercises are conducted during the drills, known as United Sharp Sword, in the Taiwan Strait to the island's north and south as well as in the sea and airspace to its east.
The PLA stated that the move was required to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity. "This is a serious warning to the Taiwan independence separatist forces and external forces' collusion and provocation," the PLA claimed.
Tsai visited the two remaining formal allies of the self-governing island in Central America before returning home on Friday when she ran with McCarthy.
Even before the meeting, Beijing had threatened to take action. A few hours prior to the arranged meeting on Wednesday, the Shandong aircraft carrier was seen traveling through Taiwan's southeast waters on its approach to the western Pacific.
The Taiwanese Defense Ministry stated that it was keeping an eye on the situation and will take the necessary action to protect the security of the island.
The ministry claimed that China was using Tsai's visit to the US "as an excuse to conduct military exercises, which has seriously damaged regional peace, stability, and security."
"To preserve national sovereignty and national security, the military will respond in a cool, collected, and serious manner, and will stand vigil and monitor in accordance with the principles of "not escalating nor disputes."
Sanctions
Beijing announced tougher sanctions on Friday against Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan's de facto US ambassador, and the Ronald Reagan Library, the location of Tsai and McCarthy's meeting. However, Beijing refrained from taking the more overt action that came after McCarthy's predecessor Nancy Pelosi visited the island in August of last year.
On that occasion, China conducted days-long war drills in the vicinity of Taiwan, including missile launches across the island.
Analysts speculated that the fact that the Tsai-McCarthy meeting took place in the US or coincided with Emmanuel Macron of France and Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission's visit to Beijing may have contributed to the first, more subdued response to it.
Hours after Macron and von der Leyen left to discuss the Ukraine problem, the PLA drills started.
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Around 50 km (30 miles) northwest of the Matsu islands, which are close to the mainland but under Taiwanese control, a Chinese cruiser fired a number of rounds of artillery in the Luoyan Bay region on the coast of Fujian province while in waters bordering the Taiwan Strait.
As crew members fired shells at targets on land and in the water, smoke and muzzle flares could be seen coming from the ship's stern, according to the Reuters news agency. Large freight ships and fishing boats cruised by the drill site without stopping.
According to Taiwan's defense ministry, on Saturday morning, 42 Chinese planes and eight Chinese ships breached the strait's median line, which often acts as an informal delineation between the two sides.
Tsai and a group of US lawmakers met for lunch on Saturday. The group was led by Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
While Tsai claimed that Taiwanese citizens cherished democracy and yearned for peace, McCaul claimed that the delegation was in Taipei to show support for the democratic island.
Although there are no formal diplomatic ties between the US and Taiwan, the US is the island's main international backer. It is also required by law to give the island the tools necessary for self-defense.
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