Taiwan Foreign Minister: "China Seems to Be Preparing for War... Condemns Military Threat"

Wu Zaoxie, Taiwan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, said, "It seems that China is preparing to start a war against Taiwan."

In an interview with CNN on the 11th (U.S. local time), Minister Wu cited China's military exercises encircling Taiwan from the 8th to the 10th as a reaction to the meeting between Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

He stated that China's coercion and military threats are unacceptable and said, "The Taiwan government condemns this."

Regarding some views that China will complete preparations to attack Taiwan before 2027, Minister Wu said, "Chinese leaders should think carefully before deciding to use force against Taiwan," adding, "Whether it is 2025, 2027, or later, only Taiwan must be prepared."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Taiwan Ministry of National Defense announced that from 6 a.m. on the 11th, the day after China declared the end of its three-day encirclement exercises around Taiwan, 35 Chinese military aircraft and 8 naval vessels were identified around Taiwan within 24 hours.

Among them, 15 military aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered Taiwan's southwestern Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), the ministry added.

However, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council of China, said the exercises were "a stern warning against Taiwan independence and separatist forces colluding with external anti-China forces to provoke," and described them as "essential actions to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.