China “ready to counter any provocation” in Taiwan Strait

Beijing (China), 25 Mar The People's Liberation Army (EPL, Chinese Army) is “ready to counter any provocation that destabilizes the Taiwan Strait and undermines Chinese interests,” said Chinese Defence Portfolio Spokesman Wu Qian, quoted today by the Xinhua agency. The spokesman for the Ministry made these statements in response to “attempts by the Progressive Democratic Party” (PDP, ruler on the island) to draw parallels “between the question of Ukraine and that of Taiwan”. Wu's statements are also a “response” to “speculations” expressed by “some US politicians” about the “military threat” posed by China, according to the agency. Wu rejected any comparison between Ukraine and Taiwan: “Taiwan is not Ukraine. The question of Taiwan is an internal matter of China that does not tolerate any foreign interference,” he said. Last week, the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense confirmed the passage of a Chinese Army aircraft carrier ship through the Taiwan Strait hours before the presidents of China and the United States, Xi Jinping and Joe Biden, met by videoconference. For its part, on February 27, the PLA called the passage of the US destroyer USS Ralph Johnson through the Taiwan Strait a “provocation” the previous day. China claims for itself the sovereignty of Taiwan, which it considers to be a rebellious province for whose reunification it has not ruled out the use of force. The island is one of the biggest causes of conflict between China and the United States, mainly because Washington is Taiwan's main arms supplier and its main ally in the event of a war outbreak with Beijing. CHIEF aa/ga