The People's Liberation Army's (PLA) military exercises around the island of Taiwan are a decisive punishment for the Lai Ching-teo administration's separatist provocations and a necessary step to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, said Tuesday.
According to her, Lai Ching-te openly advocates Taiwan's independence, labels mainland China a "hostile foreign power" and incites anti-China sentiment, undermining cooperation and increasing tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
Zhu called Lai's actions a "destroyer of peace between the two shores" and a "crisis creator". She warned that separatism in Taiwan means war and stressed that China's decision to resolve the Taiwan issue and achieve reunification is "rock solid".
It also said China's measures were aimed at separatists, not the majority of Taiwan's people, and urged them to stand on the "right side of history" and work together with mainland China for reunification and national renewal.
On Tuesday morning, the PLA Eastern Command began joint exercises involving land, sea, air and missile forces maneuvering from all directions toward the island of Taiwan.
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