Taiwan independence can only lead to war, self-destruction, China's military says

China's military on Monday (October 14) released a video of its forces carrying out emergency drills on the ground, at sea and in the air as part of its latest round of war games around Taiwan, and said the exercises were a warning and that the independence of Taiwan means war. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA)’s Eastern Theater Command, through a navy officer speaking in the video, said the drills were taking place in the direction of Keelung Harbour on the three islands in the northern part of Taiwan, as he emphasised that the soldiers were “alert and ready to fight on the orders of the military”. China held a single day of what it called "Joint Sword-2024B" drills on Monday as a warning to "separatist acts”, following a National Day speech last week by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te that Beijing denounced. In its daily update on Chinese military activity around the island in the previous 24 hours, Taiwan's defence ministry said it spotted 153 Chinese military aircraft, updating a figure given on Monday evening of 125 which it had already said was a record high for a single day. (Production: Josh D. Arslan)