The Chinese military remains on high alert – “ready to fight at all times and able to fight at any time” – to thwart any attempt at Taiwan independence, according to the commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) unit overseeing the Taiwan Strait.
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The warning from Lin Xiangyang, who heads the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command, came at a symposium in Beijing on Friday to mark the 20th anniversary of the Anti-Secession Law.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary, and this law serves as the legal basis for opposing Taiwan’s independence and promoting reunification. It also provides a legal framework for the use of “non-peaceful means” under certain conditions to achieve reunification.
Friday’s event marked the first time a frontline PLA commander had addressed such a meeting. His speech comes at a time of worsening cross-strait tensions, especially after William Lai Ching-te of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) took office as leader of Taiwan last May.
Beijing has repeatedly called Lai a “dangerous separatist” who is likely to increase the risk of cross-strait war.
According to excerpts from Lin’s speech published on Saturday by the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily, the commander warned that “if ‘Taiwan independence’ secessionists are stubborn or even take desperate measures, and if external forces are determined to create tension and turbulence in cross-strait relations”, the Chinese military would “take all necessary measures to strongly deter and punish them”.
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He also vowed that the PLA would “forge more reliable means and stronger capabilities to make sufficient and concrete military preparations to safeguard the complete reunification of our motherland”.
Beijing blames Lai for destroying cross-strait peace with his repeated remarks that Taiwan and mainland China are not “subordinate to one another”. Since Lai’s inauguration last May, Beijing has tightened legal action related to anti-succession activities and intensified military drills around the island.