China on ‘insidious’ path, US Pacific commander says after Taiwan exercise

Chinese fighter jets fly over Taiwan’s central mountain range, October 14, 2024, in this screenshot from a video released by China’s Eastern Theater Command. (East China Theater Command)

The commander of the US military in the Pacific took the measure of the Chinese military during a virtual fireside chat on Tuesday, a day after Chinese ships and planes invaded Taiwan for a military exercise a day.

China on Monday sent 153 warplanes, a record in one day, across the median of the Taiwan Strait, the unofficial dividing line between the island and mainland China, during the Joint Sword 2024B exercise. The aircraft carrier Liaoning and two dozen ships took part in the exercises, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense wrote on the social platform X on Monday and Tuesday.

The training took place four days after Taiwan celebrated National Day, its founding holiday, and a speech by Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te. China launched a similar two-day exercise, Joint Sword 2024A, in May after Lai’s inauguration.

The exercises are the result of Beijing’s decade-long effort to modernize and reorganize its military, which bodes ill for the Indo-Pacific, according to General Charles Flynn, commander of the US military in the Pacific.

“The progressive path that they have taken, the insidious nature of that path, in other words, the legal policy, the corruption, the behavior and some of the ways in which the forces operate there – it is concerning,” he said at a conference. for the Center for a New American Security, a Washington, DC-based think tank.

Gen. Charles Flynn, Commander, U.S. Army Pacific, speaks at the AUSA Contemporary Military Forum in Washington, DC, October 14, 2024. (Leroy Council/U.S. Army)

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office reiterated that force remains an option to bring Taiwan into a union with the mainland. He considers Taiwan a breakaway province that must return home.

“We are ready to work towards the prospect of peaceful reunification with utmost sincerity and determination,” spokesman Chen Binhua said at a press briefing on Wednesday, Reuters reported that day . “But we will never commit to renouncing the use of force.”

Monday’s exercise was punishment for Taiwan because Lai had colluded with foreign powers, damaged Taiwan-China relations, threatened regional stability and “stubbornly adhered to Taiwan’s stance of independence,” he said. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said in a statement.

Lai’s statements on Taiwan’s sovereignty since his inauguration, however, differ little from those of his predecessor, Tsai Ing-wen, according to Norah Huang, director of international relations at the Prospect Foundation, a security and foreign affairs think tank. in Taipei.

China’s reunification goals are less about nationalism and more about “expansionist imperialism,” she told Stars and Stripes via email Wednesday.

“As (Beijing) continues to roll out military reforms and modernizations, China is significantly more confident in its ability to leverage its military to amplify intimidation against Taiwan,” Huang said.

As it grows stronger, China has also taken increasingly aggressive measures against neighboring countries, including territorial disputes with Vietnam and the Philippines in the South China Sea and frequent exercises around Taiwan.

Expanding on his remarks, Flynn said Chinese intimidation “helps us in many ways” as the United States builds a “security architecture” in the region.

“I think American leadership in this area carries great weight,” he said. “There exists – in the neighborhood – an economic relationship of necessity which is maintained with China. It’s undeniable.

But the United States is the “security partner of choice” among those same countries, Flynn said. “We must continue to invest and work on this every day because it is vitally important to the region. »