'Independence means war', China warns self-ruled Taiwan

The Chinese government has sternly warned Taiwan over its secessionist activities, saying “independence means war” and that Taiwan is an inseparable part of China.

“We warn those ‘Taiwan independence’ elements: those who play with fire will burn themselves, and ‘Taiwan independence’ means war,” Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said on Thursday.

Under the “One China” policy, almost all world countries recognize China's sovereignty over Taiwan and are not allowed to have formal relations with the island.

While the United States recognizes the sovereignty, it keeps selling weapons to the island and staunchly supports its secessionist president, Tsai Ing-wen.

Beijing says US contacts with Taiwan and weapon sales to the island are a violation of China’s sovereignty.

The former Trump administration particularly stepped up military support for Taiwan and in its last days in office, it even lifted a ban on diplomatic contacts with the self-ruled island, a move that infuriated Beijing.

The new warning came amid China's stepped-up military presence near Taiwan in the face of rising US meddling in the island. Taiwan reported this week that six Chinese air force aircraft, including four J-10 fighter jets, had flown into its “air defense zone.”

“The military activities carried out by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in the Taiwan Strait are necessary actions to address the current security situation in the Taiwan Strait and to safeguard national sovereignty and security,” Wu said.

Biden administration adopts same hostile China policy as Trump's

The administration of US President Joe Biden has adopted as aggressive a policy against China as that of former president Donald Trump.

China's military activities, he said, “are a solemn response to external interference and provocations by ‘Taiwan independence’ forces.” He added that only a “handful” of people in the island were seeking secession.

New US State Department spokesman Ned Price recently warned China against threatening Taiwan, after Beijing sent more than a dozen military fighter jets and bombers to conduct military drills near the self-ruled Chinese island.

“We will stand with friends and allies to advance our shared prosperity security and values in the Indo-Pacific region — and that includes deepening our ties with democratic Taiwan,” Price said in a statement. “Our commitment to Taiwan is rock-solid.”

The US routinely sends warships and warplanes to the South China Sea, which is almost entirely claimed by China.

China says military exercises near Taiwan ‘solemn warning’

China says its military exercises near Taiwan are a “solemn warning” to secessionist factions in the self-ruled island and their foreign supporters.

China has constantly warned Washington against military activities in the sea, saying that potential close military encounters by the air and naval forces of the two countries in the region could easily trigger accidents.

On Sunday, however, four days after President Joe Biden assumed power, US aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt embarked on a so-called “freedom of navigation” mission in the South China Sea.

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