China launches military maneuvers to increase pressure on Taiwan and US: “Player with fire can burn yourself”

China has reaffirmed US support for Taiwan and expressed dissatisfaction with the sudden visit of a delegation from the US Congress to Taiwan. Beijing still considers Taiwan, which seceded from China after the communist victory in 1949, to be part of the People’s Republic. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has further heightened fears of a military confrontation.

U.S. Senator Lindsay Graham during a meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen in Taipei on Friday stressed that the United States will stand by Taiwan if China’s provocations escalate. It states that giving up Taiwan is tantamount to giving up democracy, freedom and free trade. Graham criticized Beijing for its political support for Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Ukraine war.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijiang responded that the US had taken a “wrong and dangerous path” with the visit. He also accused the US of escalating tensions between China and Taiwan by supporting those who support Taiwan’s independence. “Those who play with fire can burn themselves out,” he warns. The spokesman called the matter an “internal affair” and said it would not tolerate foreign intervention.