BEIJING: Taiwan will face unprecedented challenges to its future if Beijing's massive war games to squeeze the self-governing island become the new norm, according to analysts.

In response to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi's brief visit to the island this week, the People's Liberation Army has begun several days of military drills encircling Taiwan.

The war games, which are taking place in six locations and surround Taiwan from east to west and north to south, are expected to last until Sunday. They often involve a breach of the midline in the Taiwan Strait.

In 1955 the US drew the midline separating Taiwan from mainland China, pressuring both sides to adhere to an unspoken agreement not to cross it.

Analysts warned that if the PLA continues to cross the border in subsequent exercises, those exercises could become the new benchmark.

More than 60 PLA ​​warplanes have crossed the border since Wednesday, when Pelosi was still in Taiwan.
According to Taiwan, on Thursday afternoon, the PLA fired 11 Dongfeng series missiles into the seas north, south and east of the island. Five of those missiles, according to Japan, crossed the island.

According to Taiwan's defense ministry, several warplanes and warships were engaged in joint combat training exercises around Taiwan on Friday, and dozens of them briefly crossed the midline.

Analysts warned that if the island's leaders continued to allow encroachment, Beijing would be given the opportunity to change the cross-strait status quo, which would be disastrous for Taiwan.
Tung Lee-wen, an adviser to the Taiwan thinktank, insisted that the question of when and how the PLA would attack Taiwan was relevant, rather than "if".

They claimed that the PLA deliberately flew warplanes across the midline, launched Dongfeng ballistic missiles into Taiwanese waters, and sent drones to fly over Cuomoy, an offshore island controlled by Taipei, they said. Claimed.

According to Ma Chen-kun, a professor of military affairs for China at Fu Hing Kang College in Taipei, attempts by the PLA to establish a new normal by crossing the middle line would hamper Taiwan's ability to respond to the conflict.

"The designation of the six drill zones - in the form of a blockade - was also meant to suppress Taiwan's military operation location," Ma said, adding that with these exercises serving as a model, the PLA would adopt a similar strategy. can use. The future of holding war games around Taiwan in an effort to establish another new normal.

They argued that Taiwan should not allow this to continue and that in addition to developing asymmetrical defense capabilities, a large military, effective sea and air deterrence, and powerful striking capabilities to help counter PLA obstructions. should be maintained.

A retired army officer, Major General Yu Pei-chen, argued that Taiwan should no longer coexist with an "evil neighbor" such as Beijing.

We must no longer let [Beijing] threaten us, he said, warning the island's leaders of the possible repercussions.
Taiwan's Ministry of Defense has so far maintained its long-standing principle, "Will stand bravely to fight when struck by the enemy, not to pursue and resist others."

John Culver, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub, said the PLA's war games around Taiwan were unlikely to be an isolated incident during an online discussion in Washington on Thursday.

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