China is carrying out military exercises close to Taiwan, pretending to take control and surround important parts of the island. This is meant to send a message to "Taiwanese forces." The Chinese military has sent in the army, navy, air force, and rocket force for these drills. They include real live-fire tests, according to the military. These exercises happened just days after the United States announced it would sell $11 billion worth of weapons to Taiwan.
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| Photo:Eastern Theater Command |
Beijing strongly opposed this and has started punishing US defense companies. Taiwan has also been improving its defenses this year, which has upset Beijing. Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its country.
Taiwan's government has criticized China's exercises, saying they break international rules. Taiwan's defense ministry said it found Chinese planes and ships flying and sailing around Taiwan on Monday morning.
They put their military and missile systems on alert to watch the situation. The ministry said the forces are "ready" to protect Taiwan and "keep our people safe." Even though the first part of the exercises has started, the Chinese military said bigger exercises will begin on Tuesday.
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