PLA exercises resolute punishment for 'Taiwan independence' provocations: spokesperson

The military exercises of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command around Taiwan Island serve as a resolute punishment for Lai Ching-te authorities' blatant "Taiwan independence" provocations, said a mainland spokesperson on Tuesday.

The exercises are also a stern warning to separatist forces attempting to undermine peace in the Taiwan Strait, and a necessary action to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, said Zhu Fenglian, a State Council Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson.

"'Taiwan independence' means war, and pursuing 'Taiwan independence' means pushing the people of Taiwan into a perilous situation," Zhu said.

Zhu stressed the mainland's rock-solid determination and unshakable capability to resolve the Taiwan question and achieve national reunification.

The mainland will neither tolerate nor leave any room for activities seeking "Taiwan independence," she said.

The PLA announced earlier on Tuesday that its Eastern Theater Command has started to conduct joint exercises around Taiwan Island, organizing army, navy, air and rocket forces to close in on the island from multiple directions.

Zhu stated that Lai has stubbornly adhered to a separatist stance in pursuit of "Taiwan independence," brazenly labeling the mainland as a "hostile external force," introducing the so-called "17 strategies" to counter alleged threats to the island, inciting anti-China sentiment, obstructing cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation, and escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

His actions have exposed his nature as a "saboteur of cross-Strait peace" and a "creator of crises in the Taiwan Strait" who is anti-peace, anti-exchange, anti-democracy and anti-human, the spokesperson noted.

"We will tolerate no such provocation, show no leniency, and will resolutely counter and take stern punitive measures against these acts," she said.

However, Zhu emphasized that the mainland's countermeasures specifically target separatist activities advocating "Taiwan independence" and are not directed at the broader population of Taiwan.

She expressed the hope that the people of Taiwan will stand on the right side of history, distinguish right from wrong, and join hands with their compatriots on the mainland in firmly opposing separatist activities and external interference.