Taiwan China relations

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Taiwan suspects Chinese ships cut islands’ internet cables

NANGAN, Taiwan (AP) — In the past month, bed and breakfast owner Chen Yu-lin had to tell his guests he couldn’t provide them with the internet.

https://apnews.com/article/matsu-taiwan-internet-cables-cut-china-65f10f5f73a346fa788436366d7a7c70?

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China says US is ‘playing with fire’ after latest military aid for Taiwan The Chinese government protested Sunday the latest American announcements of military sales and assistance to Taiwan, warning the United States that it is “playing with fire.” President Biden authorized the provision of up to $571 million in Defense Department material and services and in military education and training for self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory and says must come under its control. Read more.

Why this matters: The military sales and assistance aim to help Taiwan defend itself and deter China from launching an attack. A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement urged the U.S. to stop arming Taiwan and stop what it called “dangerous moves that undermine peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.” Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the approval of the two sales.   U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has said he would not commit to defending Taiwan if China were to invade during his presidency. Trump has also said that Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defending it against China, likening the relationship to insurance. Taiwan spends about 2.5% of its GDP on defense.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Many Americans have come to rely on Chinese-made drones. Now lawmakers want to ban them   Republican senators demand an end to science and tech cooperation with China   China has expanded its nuclear force and strengthened ties to Russia, the Pentagon says

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China

China launched military exercises around Taiwan today as “a stern warning and forceful deterrence against ‘Taiwan Independence’ separatist forces,” the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command said in a statement. The drills, which involve its army, navy, air force and rocket force, come just days after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s visit to Asia, where he vowed to counter “China’s aggression” in the Indo-Pacific region. Officials in Taiwan  condemned the exercises, calling them “reckless,” “irresponsible” and “totally unacceptable.” 

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China’s defense minister renews threats to take over Taiwan as he opens security forum

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China’s defense minister renewed threats that his country would take over self-ruled Taiwan as he opened a security forum in Beijing on Thursday.

https://apnews.com/article/china-taiwan-xiangshan-forum-dong-jun-5d82126b58ad660a9b901f62372beeb0?

ps:Who's going to stop them?? Russia? North Korea?

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Taiwan vice-president presses case at EU parliament for joint efforts to counter China

Taiwan’s vice-president, Bi-Khim Hsiao, urged the EU to boost security and trade ties with the self-governing island and support its democracy in the face of growing threats by China in a rare address to a group of international lawmakers in Brussels.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/08/taiwan-vice-president-presses-case-at-eu-parliament-for-joint-efforts-to-counter-china?

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???? China staged its largest war games around Taiwan, showcasing Beijing's ability to cut off the island from outside support in a conflict. The drills are the largest to date by total area, and closer to Taiwan. —Reuters

China stages military drills around Taiwan to warn ‘external forces’ after US, Japan tensions

China’s military on Monday dispatched air, navy and missile units to conduct joint live-fire drills around the island of Taiwan, which Beijing called a “stern warning” against separatist and “external interference” forces. Taiwan said it was placing forces on alert and called the Chinese government “the biggest destroyer of peace.” Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

Why China is holding military drills around Taiwan — and the history behind it AP Exclusive: China threatens detention in Xinjiang over banned Uyghur songs China sanctions 20 US defense companies and 10 executives over massive arms sales to Taiwan   ? China's loud warning     Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios   China's massive live-fire military exercises this week in the air and seas around Taiwan come as the calendar flips one year closer to a date that looms large for Pentagon planners, Axios' Dave Lawler and Colin Demarest write. Why it matters: The U.S. military has operated for the past five years under the assumption that China is preparing to take Taiwan by force as soon as 2027. The big picture: The U.S. has built bases in the Pacific, poured billions into domestic semiconductor manufacturing, shipped arms to Taipei and shuffled its military assets — all with an eye on a potential war over the self-governing island. But the sense of urgency has not always matched the tightening timeline — now down to just a single year. ? Zoom in: That could be changing: The Trump administration announced the largest-ever arms sale ($11.1 billion) to Taiwan this month. While the exercises were likely already planned, the arms deal announcement infuriated Beijing. A Chinese embassy spokesperson told Axios such moves "risk turning Taiwan into a powder keg" and accelerating the possibility of conflict in the Taiwan Strait. Keep reading.

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After quieter weeks, Taiwan reports large-scale Chinese military aircraft presence near the island

HONG KONG (AP) — Taiwan saw a surge of Chinese military planes near the island, its defense ministry said Sunday, after a sharp drop in flights over the past two weeks had sparked discussions among observers.

https://apnews.com/article/china-taiwan-planes-military-decline-surge-c7a1dfa0bd5fba6b74ccf430a422c178?

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Taiwan’s opposition leader meets China’s Xi Jinping as both sides call for peace

BEIJING (AP) — Taiwan’s opposition leader met Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, the first such encounter in over a decade, with both sides affirming the need for maintaining peace around the self-ruled island that China claims as its territory.

https://apnews.com/article/china-taiwan-cheng-xi-9735f829b2d9d68525ad192253e47fac?

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🇹🇼 Axios dispatch: Taiwan's quiet calculus

Photo illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Photos: Getty Images

Colin Demarest, who writes our weekly Future of Defense newsletter, traveled to Taiwan for this dispatch: TAIPEI — There's a postmortem playing out here after Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Trump to be careful on Taiwan, and Trump responded with ambivalence about U.S. arms sales and the island's chances in any conflict. Why it matters: Some Trump advisers left the summit thinking a Chinese move on Taiwan was growing more likely. But in Taipei, there was no panic, at least on the surface. Taiwanese officials continue to push for arms deliveries while also emphasizing self-defense initiatives, indigenous defense tech and critical infrastructure. There is unsurprisingly a "very high degree of sensitivity" in Taiwan about military aggression and information warfare from China, said Tsung-Yi Tang, a representative for civil-defense organization Kuma Academy. "But in terms of the daily operations, actually we are still more relaxed." Keep reading.