Taiwan begins live-fire artillery exercise amid China manoeuvres

Taipei 9 August : Taiwan on Tuesday began live-fire artillery drills in the midst of Chinas ongoing military operations around Taiwan.

It was designed to mimic Taiwans defense against an attack from Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) according to the news agency dpa.It will take place between Tuesday and Thursday of this week.It was scheduled in the context of Taiwans annual Han Kuang exercises, but is taking place amid increased tensions.

It also comes shortly after China announced it would extend vast-scale sea and air exercises to the north east and south-west of Taiwan that were scheduled to conclude on Sunday.No official end date has been set.Taiwanese television reported Tuesday that flares had been shot in areas along the coast during the exercise in Pingtung county in the south of the island close to a zone that was earlier designated by the Chinese army for the exercise.The Foreign Ministry in Taipei has condemned Chinas expansion of its military operations close to Taiwan "Chinas primary goal behind the military exercise is to change the status that is in place in the Taiwan Strait and the entire region," Foreign Minister Joseph Wu spoke at a press conference.

Wu said Chinas massive military drills, missile launches, and cyberattacks are all an element of Beijings "military plan to be ready for an assault of Taiwan".He claimed that they were tactics to "weaken the morale of the people" in the island.

China began its military manoeuvres on 2 August in the wake of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosis visit to Taiwan.Since its inception since its inception, the Chinese military has not only resorted to the air and naval blockade as well as amphibious landing capability to launch beach attacks on Taiwan according to Chinese media.

Taiwans military reported that Chinese aircraft carried out 66 sorties in the last 24 hours all by themselves.In the course of this, 22 aircrafts flew over the Taiwan Strait median line, which was a line that had generally been accepted in the past.

Fourteen Chinese warships were believed to have been involved, and.A Chinese drone was also seen on Sunday night in the area of Kinmen, which is outlying Taiwanese island of Kinmen located just a few kilometers from the Chinese coast.