China Military Drills Near Taiwan Unnecessarily Raise Tensions: US

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement: “China’s military actions and rhetoric against Taiwan and others in the region are unnecessarily increasing tensions. We call on Beijing to exercise restraint, cease military pressure against Taiwan, and instead engage in meaningful dialogue.” he said.

Beijing launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coast guard ships to encircle Taiwan’s main island on Monday and Tuesday this week, saying the exercises simulated a blockade of major Taiwanese ports.

Taipei condemned the drills as “highly provocative”.

China claims democratic Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to annex it.

“The United States supports peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and opposes unilateral changes to the status quo, including through force or coercion,” Pigott said. he said.

US President Donald Trump appeared to rule out the possibility of his counterpart Xi Jinping ordering an invasion, saying on Monday he was not concerned about China’s live-fire drills.

“I have a great relationship with President Xi. He didn’t say anything to me about it. I definitely saw it,” Trump told reporters when asked about the drills.

“I don’t believe he would do that,” Trump said, clearly referring to an invasion.

“They’ve been doing naval exercises in this area for 20 years. Now people perceive it a little differently.”

Beijing’s show of force comes after the Trump administration approved an $11 billion arms package for Taiwan.

The United States has been committed to providing self-defense for Taiwan for decades, but it remains unclear whether the U.S. military would intervene in an invasion.

China’s latest military exercise was its sixth major round of maneuvers since 2022, when then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan angered Beijing.