Beijing staged live-fire drills around Taiwan on Monday, deploying troops, warships, fighter jets and artillery for its "Justice Mission 2025" exercises, as the island scrambled soldiers and showcased U.S.-made hardware to rehearse repelling an attack.
The United States has approved $11.1bn in arms sales to Taiwan, one of Washington’s largest-ever military packages for the self-ruled island, which Beijing has promised to unify with mainland China.
US President Donald Trump has refused to approve a weapons package for Taiwan, the Washington Post has reported, citing five people familiar with the matter.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has declared that the reunification of Taiwan and the Chinese mainland is a “historical inevitability”. He made the comments as the island prepares to hold contentious parliamentary and presidential elections.
