In a move with significant geopolitical implications, China initiated ‘punishment’ drills around Taiwan on Thursday. The drills, a response to what China perceives as ‘separatist acts’, involved the deployment of heavily armed warplanes and staged mock attacks. State media, in the meantime, launched a scathing attack on the newly inaugurated President Lai Ching-te. These exercises, conducted in the Taiwan Strait and around Taiwan-controlled islands near the Chinese coast, were executed just three days after Lai assumed office, a man Beijing views as a dangerous troublemaker.

China, which has never ruled out the eventual reunification of Taiwan and mainland China, regularly demonstrates its power to Taipei, which it claims as sovereign territory. The two sides split at the end of a civil war 75 years ago. The drills, which run through Friday and involve the army, navy, air force, and rocket force of the Eastern Theater Command, are designed to simulate joint sea-air combat readiness patrol and “the seizure of comprehensive battlefield control by the combined forces,” a military spokesman said on social media.

During the drills, dozens of PLA fighter jets, fully loaded with live ammunition, flew to predetermined positions over Taiwan’s main island and outlying islands. They were escorted by destroyers and frigates that simulated strikes on high-value ‘enemy’ targets, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The military drills have not only stirred outrage but also sparked anxiety among the 23 million people on the island. The fear of a full-blown confrontation with Beijing, which could potentially lead to an attack on the US-backed democracy, looms large. Moreover, China’s actions have raised concerns about a possible economic blockade. A Chinese military expert, speaking on a state-run TV channel, suggested that the exercise was also a rehearsal for severing Taiwan’s vital foreign trade.

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In a week-long speech to mark his inauguration, Lai pledged to defend the island’s democracy against external threats. He called on China to cease its political and military intimidation of Taiwan and share the global responsibility for maintaining peace and stability in the region.

Lai also vowed to continue his government’s efforts to promote the Taiwanese economy and ensure that the island is fully integrated into international society. He also urged significant nations, especially China’s close ally, the United States, to support Taiwan’s participation in regional multilateral organizations.

But in a speech at the start of this month, China’s new foreign minister said the country would not rule out taking steps to reclaim Taiwan. Yang Jiechi also said that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), led by Lai, has failed to live up to its electoral promises.

In the January elections, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) secured a majority of parliamentary seats and the presidency for the first time since the KMT was founded in 1949. Beijing, however, views the DPP as a renegade province to be reunified with the mainland and has intensified pressure on Taiwan in recent years. It has even issued threats of retaliation if the island takes any steps towards independence. It has escalated military incursions around the island in the past few months. In response, the island and its allies call for Beijing to de-escalate the situation.