China Launches Joint Military Drills Near Taiwan, Targets Lai Ching-Te

On Tuesday, China’s military announced the launch of joint exercises involving the army, navy, and rocket forces around Taiwan. The drills were described as a “stern warning” and a strong deterrent against Taiwan’s independence, with Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-Te being labeled a “parasite.”

The exercises around the democratically governed island, which China views as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring under its control, come after Lai called Beijing a “foreign hostile force” last month.

China detests Lai as a “separatist,” and in a video accompanying the Eastern Theater Command’s announcement depicted him as cartoon bug held by a pair of chopsticks above a burning Taiwan.

“The focus is on exercises such as combat readiness patrols at sea and in the air, seizing comprehensive control, striking maritime and land targets and imposing blockade controls on key areas and routes,” the Eastern Theater Command said on its official WeChat social media account.

Troublemaker

Taiwan’s Defence Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that China’s Shandong aircraft carrier group had entered its response area on Monday, adding the group had dispatched military aircraft and ships and activated land-based missile systems in response.

“The Chinese Communist Party has continued to increase its military activities around Taiwan and in the Indo-Pacific region… and has become the biggest ‘troublemaker’ in the international community,” the statement added.

Taiwan’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on China depicting Lai as a bug.

Cartoon Bug

A series of propaganda videos were released in quick succession after the announcement, depicting Chinese warships and fighter jets encircling the island, Taipei being aimed at from above, and military vehicles patrolling city streets.

A poster accompanying the drills titled “Closing In,” and showing Chinese warships and fighter jets circling the island, was released shortly after the announcement on the Eastern Theater Command’s Weibo.

This was followed by a video titled “Shell”, and depicting Lai Ching-Te as a cartoon bug held by a pair of chopsticks above a burning Taiwan, on the Eastern Theater Command’s WeChat page.

“Parasite poisoning Taiwan island. Parasite hollowing Island out. Parasite courting ultimate destruction,” the animation said.

(With inputs from Reuters)