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c0lo [soylentnews.org] writes:

Reuters [reuters.com]

China toughened its language towards Taiwan on Thursday, warning after recent stepped up military activities near the island that “independence means war” and that its armed forces were acting in response to provocation and foreign interference.
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China believes that Taiwan’s democratically-elected government is moving the island towards a declaration of formal independence, though Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen has repeatedly said it is already an independent country called the Republic of China, its formal name.

Asked at a monthly news briefing about the air force’s recent activities, Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said Taiwan is an inseparable part of China.

“The military activities carried out by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in the Taiwan Strait are necessary actions to address the current security situation in the Taiwan Strait and to safeguard national sovereignty and security,” he said.
“They are a solemn response to external interference and provocations by ‘Taiwan independence’ forces,” he added.

Wu said a “handful” of people in Taiwan were seeking the island’s independence.
“We warn those ‘Taiwan independence’ elements: those who play with fire will burn themselves, and ‘Taiwan independence’ means war,” he added.
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Asked about the remarks, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said there was no reason that tensions between China and Taiwan “need to lead to anything like confrontation.” He also reaffirmed longstanding U.S. military support to Taiwan’s self-defense.

“We have obligations to assist Taiwan with their self-defense and I think you’re going to see that continue,” said Kirby, a retired admiral, in the first Pentagon briefing of the Biden administration.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said China should think carefully and not underestimate the island’s determination to defend its sovereignty and uphold freedom and democracy.

South China Morning Post [scmp.com]

Beijing gave a stern warning to the new Joe Biden administration and Taiwan that the pursuit of independence for the self-ruled island “means war”.
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Over the weekend, mainland China sent 13 warplanes to the southern end of the Taiwan Strait, according to the Taiwanese defence ministry. They included a Y-8 transport aircraft, eight H-6K bombers and four J-16 fighter jets.

The military move coincided with a US carrier battle group entering the disputed South China Sea for freedom-of-navigation operations.

Beijing is closely watching whether the Biden administration seeks closer ties with Taiwan, as occurred in the past four years under Trump when Washington removed restrictions on official visits between the US and the island and boosted arms sales to Taipei.

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The spokesman then said in English: “To contain China, mission impossible”.

On Wednesday, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, nominee to be the US ambassador to the United Nations, said Washington must help Taiwan push back against mainland Chinese efforts to compromise its security.
In a confirmation hearing in the US Senate, she said Taiwan was “one of the strongest democracies in the region”, and the US needed to support and “stand by them”.

Despite delivering the firm warning, Wu described the bilateral relationship between China and the US as “standing at a new starting point of history”, saying China wanted to work with Biden’s government to repair ties.
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At the same press conference, Wu said the PLA would conduct exchanges on all levels with the North Korean military to promote friendship and safeguard regional peace.

Voice of America [voanews.com]

TAIPEI - A Taipei think tank and observers in Taiwan say China is trying to influence residents with “cognitive warfare,” hoping to reverse opposition to Beijing’s desired takeover of Taiwan so it can be accomplished without having to go to war.

Taiwanese attitudes have been drifting away from the mainland, especially among the younger generation, whose members see themselves “born independent” with no ties to China.

China’s effort, these analysts say, includes tactics ranging from military intimidation and propaganda to misinformation spread by its army of online trolls in a bid to manipulate public opinion. They say the complexity and frequency of the effort puts Taiwan on a constant defensive.

“Its ultimate goal is to control what’s between the ears. That is, your brain or how you think, which [Beijing] hopes leads to a change of behavior,” Tzeng Yi-suo, director of the cybersecurity division at the government-funded Institute of National Defense and Security Research in Taipei, told VOA

Why Taiwan Is the Biggest Risk for a U.S.-China Clash [bloomberg.com]

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