Taiwan Starts Drills Simulating Defense Against Chinese Attack

Taiwan’s military began live-fire artillery drills simulating defense against an attack from China, in case it happens.

Spokesperson from Taiwan's Eighth Army Corps was quoted as saying by reports that these drills "were already scheduled and were not being held in response to China's exercises.”

Taiwan foreign minister Joseph Wu told reporters on Tuesday that Beijing used U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit as a “excuse” to hold massive “Taiwan lockdown” drills.

Taiwan’s MOFA hit by 170M cyberattacks per minute

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement August 9 that it had been hit by 170 million cyberattacks per minute during the height of the tension last week. Wu explained China was well prepared and would not have been able to prepare the drones, cyberattacks and misinformation campaigns in such a short period of time.

China will not attempt Taiwan invasion in 2 years: U.S.

Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl said during a Pentagon press conference on Monday that China would not attempt to seize Taiwan militarily in the next two years.

"Clearly the (People's Republic of China) is trying to coerce Taiwan, clearly they're trying to coerce the international community and all I'll say is we're not going to take the bait and it's not going to work," Kahl said.

The U.S. will hold freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait in "the coming weeks." Kahl said the U.S. military will "continue to fly, to sail and to operate wherever international law allows us to do so, and that includes in the Taiwan Strait."

Kahl said nothing about Pelosi's visit to Taiwan had changed "one iota" of Washington's policy toward Taiwan or China. He vowed that the U.S. will maintain its "one China" policy and objects to any change in the status quo.