Latest news with #cross-strait
South China Morning Post
09-07-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Taiwan's biggest-ever war games aim for combat realism: ‘prepare for the unexpected'
Taiwan's largest and longest-ever annual military drills kicked off on Wednesday with a simulation of mainland Chinese grey-zone tactics as the opening move in a round-the-clock war game designed to reflect a realistic and protracted cross-strait conflict scenario. The 41st edition of the Han Kuang Exercise marks a significant departure from previous years, both in scale and duration. Doubled in length to 10 days, this year's drills are being conducted without scripts or fixed timelines to mimic battlefield unpredictability, according to Taiwan's defence ministry. Ministry officials said the change reflected an increasingly volatile threat environment, especially amid stepped-up pressure from mainland China's People's Liberation Army (PLA). In response to 'separatist' moves by Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te, the PLA has amplified military pressure on the self-governed island over the past year, including ramping up joint combat patrols, naval and amphibious assault training across the Taiwan Strait, and near-daily fly-bys into Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ). Reservists receive training during the Han Kuang military exercises in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on Wednesday. This year's drills will feature full-scale urban combat. Photo: Reuters 'This is the most intensive Han Kuang ever conducted,' Major General Tung Chi-hsing, head of the defence ministry's joint operation planning division, said last week. He said the training was focused not just on a single attack, but on 'a drawn-out war that played out in stages – on beaches, in cities and across society'.
Al Arabiya
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
China opens third extension to sensitive Taiwan Strait flight path
China said on Sunday it has opened a third extension of the M503 flight route, which is just west of an unofficial dividing line in the Taiwan Strait, with Taipei protesting this was a 'unilateral' move aimed at changing the strait's status quo. China last year moved the M503 route closer to the median line, drawing a similarly angry response from Taipei, which says any changes to the flight route and its extensions must be communicated in advance and agreed by both sides. The opening of the W121 extension comes days before the annual Han Kuang military and civil defense drills that Taiwan holds to simulate a Chinese blockade and invasion of the democratic island. The median line had for years served as an unofficial barrier between Chinese-claimed Taiwan and China, but China says it does not recognize its existence and Chinese warplanes now regularly fly over it as Beijing seeks to pressure Taipei to accept its sovereignty claims. The Civil Aviation Authority of China said that 'in order to further optimize the airspace environment and improve operational efficiency, from now on, civil aviation will use the W121 connection line of the M503 route.' Taiwan's China policy-making Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement to Reuters that mainland China 'used unilateral actions to change the status quo and increase cross-strait and regional unrest.' This is the third extension after W122 and W123, which are to the south of W121, opened last year. All three go west to east, from mainland China in the direction of Taiwan. This measure is aimed at 'ensuring flight safety, reducing flight delays, and protecting the rights and interests of passengers,' China's Taiwan Affairs Office said. It added that the opening was 'beneficial' to both sides of the strait. Taipei disputed the explanation as 'unjustified,' saying 'the number of international air travelers on the mainland has not yet recovered' to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. Taiwan, facing ramped-up military pressure from China, which considers the separately governed island as its own, begins its Han Kuang exercises on July 9 and they are set to last for 10 days.
NHK
15-06-2025
- Politics
- NHK
Taiwan ex-President Ma attends forum in China
Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou has attended a forum in China to expand cross-strait exchanges. China held the annual Straits Forum in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on Sunday. Xiamen is located west of Taiwan. China's state-run media and other outlets reported that more than 7,000 people were invited from Taiwan, along with Ma, who belongs to Taiwan's largest opposition Kuomintang party. Wang Huning, a member of the Chinese Communist Party's Politburo Standing Committee and the party's No.4 official, called for firmly opposing Taiwan's independence and external interference and protecting the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait. This comment apparently referred to Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, which Beijing regards as pro-independence. Ma said deepening cooperation under a common foundation against Taiwan's independence will help create a phase of peace and mutual benefit. Beijing apparently wants to give a warning to Taiwan's ruling party under President Lai Ching-te by stressing interactions through Ma. Taiwanese authorities said the forum is a united front platform by the Chinese Communist Party targeting Taiwan.
NHK
11-06-2025
- Politics
- NHK
Ex-Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou to visit China this month
Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou will visit China later this month. He is also former chair of Taiwan's Kuomintang party which takes a more conciliatory stance toward China than the Democratic Progressive Party that currently holds power. Ma's office said on Wednesday that the visit, scheduled from Saturday through June 27, is at the invitation of China. Ma will lead a student delegation to participate in the Straits Forum, which China says is a cross-strait exchange event, in Fujian Province. The delegation is also expected to visit Gansu Province, including Dunhuang, which is famous for monuments of the ancient Silk Road trading route. Ma expressed his willingness to foster cross-strait dialogue and build a bridge of peace between Taiwan and China. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, a spokesperson for China's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, Zhu Fenglian, welcomed Ma's visit. She noted that while current situations surrounding the Taiwan Strait remain complex and tense, bilateral exchanges and cooperation should never be suspended or severed entirely. China is apparently seeking to keep the Taiwanese government of President Lai Ching-te in check through exchanges with Ma.
South China Morning Post
07-06-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Taiwan's latest security measures cut cross-strait travel, prompting pushback
Taiwanese authorities are moving to tighten security protocols on cross-strait travel by expanding oversight to include grass-roots public officials and newly hired staff members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The push, which mirrors similar but much harsher restrictions on the other side of the Taiwan Strait , comes amid fears that mainland Chinese intelligence has deeply infiltrated the Taiwanese political system. At the centre of a growing scandal is former DPP aide Huang Chu-jung, who is under investigation for allegedly using an encrypted messaging app developed on the mainland to leak classified information. Notably, the information in question involves the travel details of Taiwan's second most senior official at the time – now the island's leader – William Lai Ching-te , when he visited Paraguay in August 2023. Local media reported on Tuesday that prosecutors were alleging that Huang, who once worked for DPP New Taipei City Councillor Lee Yu-tien, also leaked travel plans from Lai's leadership campaign later the same year, compromising his personal security. Prosecutors said that through the app, which is not available on the market, Beijing obtained access to Lai's full daily itinerary – including unannounced meetings with political power brokers, business leaders, and local influencers. According to the prosecution case, the breaches extended beyond Lai's office. Other classified information alleged to have been funnelled to the mainland included deputy leader Hsiao Bi-khim's personal contact list and phone number.
