European delegations visit Taiwan to talk security as China conducts military drills

Parliamentary delegations from two countries from Europe arrived in Taiwan on Monday in pursuit of security and defence cooperation with self-ruled island amid increasingly negative sentiment from European Union states towards Beijing, reported South China Morning Post.

Led by hes of ir defence committees,  German and Lithuanian parliamentary groups visited  island on Monday for stays of four and six days respectively, Taiwan’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday. y were both expected to meet President Tsai Ing-wen and or senior officials – including those from security, defence, foreign, cross-strait and digital affairs departments – during ir time in Taiwan, ministry said.

German delegation from Free Democratic Party was heed by chair of Bundestag defence committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, and party’s deputy chair, Johannes Vogel, marking first visit by a German parliamentary group this year and third in four months, island’s foreign ministry said. Also included were Renata Alt, he of Bundestag committee on human rights and humanitarian aid, and Ulrich Lechte, a spokesperson for FDP parliamentary group, reported SCMP.

China holds military drills towards Taiwan on Monday

Chinese military held large-scale joint combat strike drills starting Sunday, sending warplanes and navy vessels toward Taiwan, both Chinese and Taiwanese defense ministries said. exercises coincided with visit of group of German lawmakers. exercises have continued into Monday, Taiwan's defense ministry said, monitoring Chinese warplanes and navy vessels on its missile systems. China's actions “have severely disrupted peace and stability in Taiwan Straits and surrounding waters," ministry said.

China has stepped up its pressure on Taiwan’s military in recent years by sending warplanes or navy vessels on an almost-daily basis toward self-ruled island. China claims sovereignty over island, which split from mainland in 1949 after a civil war. Over course of 24 hours between 6 am Sunday to 6 am Monday morning, China's People's Liberation Army flew 57 warplanes and four ships toward Taiwan, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said in a statement Monday morning. Twenty-eight of those planes crossed median line of Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary that both sides h previously stood by.

China announced drills around 11 p.m. Sunday, saying ir “primary target was to practice land strikes and sea assaults,” according to a statement from Shi Yi, a spokesperson for PLA's Eastern ater Command. At end of December, China sent a record 71 planes and 7 ships toward Taiwan, largest such scale exercise in 2022. Taiwan will hold its annual two-day military drills starting Wednesday. exercise ahe of Lunar New Year holidays is aimed at showcasing its defense capabilities.

(With AP inputs)