Military activity near Taiwan aimed to stop independence move: China – The Mainichi

BEIJING (Kyodo) — China’s office handling Taiwan affairs said Wednesday that recent Chinese military activity near the self-ruled island is aimed at “preventing Taiwan’s independence activity and interference from external forces.” A spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the Chinese government’s State Council made the remarks at a news conference days after Chinese warplanes entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone on a number of occasions. The remarks suggest the Chinese military move, which has led the United States to express concerns, was partially in response to a recent joint military exercise in waters near Taiwan that involved the United…