Asia-Pacific, China, Conflict, Defense, Power & Security PH must worry about getting embroiled in Taiwan-China conflict

In response to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s recent international trip to the United States, Belize, and Guatemala, the Chinese military enacted a number of retaliatory military measures to punish Taipei. As a part of her trip, Tsai met with US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy and a bipartisan group of House members during a layover in California, causing Beijing to increase its military pushback.

While all of the actions — including missiles tests, simulated strikes, combat readiness patrols, sending over 100 military aircraft across the median line of the Taiwan Strait, and a patrol and inspection operation — are aimed at intimating the Tsai administration and people of Taiwan, they are also a stark warning to Taiwan’s neighbors about the threat of Chinese escalation around Taiwan. 

The Philippines is one such country that should monitor these developments closely, especially since a Chinese Shandong aircraft carrier strike group passed through the Bashi Channel on the same day as Tsai met with McCarthy to participate in the Joint Sword drills to Taiwan’s east. 

In response, the US Navy sent the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group to the Philippine Sea to monitor the situation.

Read more on Rappler>>