China’s recent actions on Taiwan do not suggest imminent military threat, experts say

Despite ongoing military exercises, experts say there are no immediate signs of a direct military attack, writes William Yang

A soldier holds a Taiwanese flag (AP)

Over the last few weeks, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been organising several military exercises characterised as drills aimed at Taiwan.

The PLA recently held a cross-sea exercise featuring sea, land and air forces a few days after Taiwan announced its plan to establish a representative office in Lithuania and allowed a US aircraft to land at one of its airports.

A week before that, the PLA and the Chinese navy held a joint amphibious landing exercise near China’s Fujian Province, which is just across the Taiwan Strait from the island. Chinese military experts told the state-run tabloid Global Times that the move demonstrates the PLA’s capability to “safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity” while sending warnings to the US and Taiwan.