On “Fox News @ Night,” retired lieutenant colonel Daniel Davis and former State Department employee David Tafuri discuss China’s decision to sever diplomatic relations with the United States and its military exercises near Taiwan’s borders.
NEW Fox News articles can now be heard on audio! Taiwan has issued a warning that recent military exercises by China are merely a dress rehearsal for an actual invasion.
Chinese naval warships have recently encircled the disputed island as a show of force on behalf of Beijing.
The fact that a congressional delegation led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island last week has caused the Chinese Communist Party to express open anger.
In direct defiance of Chinese requests that the United States call off the meeting, the delegation carried out the visit.
A member of the People’s Liberation Army can be seen using binoculars while participating in military drills on Friday, August 5, 2022, as Taiwan’s frigate Lan Yang can be seen in the background. The image was given by China’s Xinhua News Agency. AP (Lin Jian/Xinhua)
On Friday, August 5, 2022, a fighter jet can be seen flying toward Taiwan from the 68-nautical-mile beautiful location in Pingtan, which is located in the Fujian Province in southeast China. Ng Han Guan for AP Photo
China’s navy and air force started conducting military drills in six zones surrounding Taiwan after Pelosi left, some of which overlapped Taiwan’s territorial seas.
In response, the US sent six warships to the region.
High-ranking members of President Biden’s cabinet are among the American officials who have acknowledged the legality of China’s threats towards Taiwan.
Joint military actions were started by the People’s Liberation Army around Taiwan Island. China strongly upholds its independence and integrity. (Chinese People’s Liberation Army)
China’s military drills, which include recent missile launches into the Taiwan Strait and Japan’s economic zone, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, indicate “substantial escalation.”
He told a gathering of reporters at the ASEAN summit on Friday, “China has chosen to overreact and use Speaker Pelosi’s visit as a pretext to boost aggressive military operations in and around the Taiwan Strait.
Japan, a close friend of Taiwan and the US in East Asia, has expressed its own worries.
The rockets “threatened Japan’s national security and the lives of the Japanese people, which we strongly condemn,” according to Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi.
Prior to their breakfast meeting on Friday, August 5, 2022, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, center right, and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, front, center left, pose with their congressional delegation in Tokyo. (AP via Kyodo News)
On Friday, August 5, 2022, a boat travels across the water at the 68-nautical-mile beautiful location in Pingtan, Fujian Province, southeast China, which is the closest point on mainland China to the island of Taiwan. Ng Han Guan for AP Photo
The issue in Japan is made worse by the lack of a formal standing military because it is forbidden by the constitution of the island nation. Japan keeps a small “defense force” in place for security.
Japan and the U.S. are continually stepping up their military readiness in case China decides to launch an attack on Taiwan, while China frequently threatens to seize Taiwan by force, if necessary.
Lawrence Richards from Fox News contributed to this story.
Fox News Digital journalist Timothy Nerozzi works there. You may email him at timothy.nerozzi@fox.com and follow him on Twitter at @timothynerozzi.
