Chinese Officials say the drill will help test operational readiness
GNN – The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) announced yesterday plans for a live-fire submarine warfare exercise later this week, which a government spokesperson called a “drill to test operational readiness.”
The short notice of the announcement—which occurred only two days before the exercises will commence—has raised eyebrows internationally. Normally, these sorts of exercises are announced weeks or even months in advance, in order to avoid potential misunderstandings.
“The purpose of a drill is to see how our forces can react on short notice,” the spokesman said, defending the action. “If we announced this drill months in advance, how could we really test the reaction times of our personnel? They can read a newspaper just as well as anyone.”
In Taipei, the Taiwanese government has reacted negatively to the announcement. The exercise, which will take place in the Straits of Taiwan, as well as the South China Sea and parts of the East China Sea, will completely surround the island of Taiwan, although all exercises are slated to take place several miles outside Taiwanese waters, despite the fact that Beijing views Taiwan as a breakaway province.
“To demonstrate that this exercises is purely peaceful,” the PLAN spokesman said, “we will ensure that all exercises take place well outside the waters immediately close to the shore of Taiwan. We do this to avoid any misunderstandings.”
The State Department gave no official reaction to the announcement. The Secretary of Defense refused questions from reporters on the situation; however, a top defense official confirmed that the Defense Department would we watching the exercises “with real interest.”