US Blasts China's 'Destabilizing' Military Activity Near Taiwan

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin answers reporters questions at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US July 21, 2021. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin answers reporters questions at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US July 21, 2021. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno
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US Blasts China's 'Destabilizing' Military Activity Near Taiwan

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin answers reporters questions at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US July 21, 2021. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin answers reporters questions at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US July 21, 2021. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday blasted China's "provocative, destabilizing" military activity near Taiwan, as well as Beijing's growing aggression across the wider Asia-Pacific region.

Tensions between Washington and Beijing are soaring over democratic, self-ruled Taiwan, which China views as its territory and has vowed to seize one day, by force if necessary.

Beijing has conducted dozens of incursions into Taiwan's air defense zone this year, and on Friday, Defense Minister Wei Fenghe warned Austin that China was prepared to go to war if the island declares independence.

In an address to the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore, Austin took aim at Beijing's "growing coercion" towards Taiwan, a day after holding his first face-to-face talks with Wei.

"We've witnessed a steady increase in provocative and destabilizing military activity near Taiwan," he told the forum, which is attended by defense ministers from Asia and around the world.

"That includes (Chinese military) aircraft flying near Taiwan in record numbers in recent months, and nearly on a daily basis," AFP quoted him as saying.

"We categorically oppose any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side," he added.

But he also stressed the importance of "fully open lines of communication with China's defense leaders" in avoiding miscalculations.

"These are deeply, deeply important conversations."

On Friday, Wei had warned Austin that "if anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter the cost", according to Chinese officials.

He also vowed that Beijing would "smash to smithereens any 'Taiwan independence' plot and resolutely uphold the unification of the motherland", according to the Chinese defense ministry.



Russian War Bloggers Report New Ukrainian Attack in Kursk Region

People wait at a bus stop next to a reinforced concrete bomb shelter installed in a street in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, in Kursk, Russia August 28, 2024. The sign on the construction reads: "Shelter". REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
People wait at a bus stop next to a reinforced concrete bomb shelter installed in a street in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, in Kursk, Russia August 28, 2024. The sign on the construction reads: "Shelter". REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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Russian War Bloggers Report New Ukrainian Attack in Kursk Region

People wait at a bus stop next to a reinforced concrete bomb shelter installed in a street in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, in Kursk, Russia August 28, 2024. The sign on the construction reads: "Shelter". REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
People wait at a bus stop next to a reinforced concrete bomb shelter installed in a street in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, in Kursk, Russia August 28, 2024. The sign on the construction reads: "Shelter". REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Ukrainian forces have launched a major new attack in Russia's western Kursk region, Russian military bloggers reported on Sunday.
Ukrainian troops broke across the border in a surprise incursion on Aug. 6, and for the past five months have resisted Russian attempts to expel them.
Reports from the Russian bloggers, who support Moscow's war in Ukraine but have often reported critically on failings and setbacks, indicated that the latest Ukrainian assault had put Russian forces on the defensive.
"Despite strong pressure from the enemy, our units are heroically holding the line," the Operativnye Svodki (Operational Reports) channel said.
It said artillery and small-arms battles were taking place, and Ukraine was using Western-armored vehicles to bring in large numbers of infantry.
The reports, which Reuters could not independently verify, said fighting was concentrated near the town of Bolshoye Soldatskoye.
But one influential blogger, Yuri Podolyak, said this was most likely a Ukrainian distraction manoeuvre, possibly to prepare a strike on Glushkovo, further west. He recommended civilians there and in another town, Korenevo, to evacuate.
Ukrainian and Western assessments say that some 11,000 troops from Russia's ally North Korea have been deployed in the Kursk region to support Moscow's forces. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied their presence.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday that Russian and North Korean forces had suffered heavy losses.
"In battles yesterday and today near just one village, Makhnovka, in Kursk region, the Russian army lost up to a battalion of North Korean infantry soldiers and Russian paratroops," Zelenskiy said. "This is significant."
The president provided no specific details. A battalion can vary in size but is generally made up of several hundred troops.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in response to a question at his marathon annual phone-in last month that Russia would definitely drive Ukrainian forces out of Kursk but declined to set a date for when this would happen.
Russia's defense ministry did not mention Kursk in its latest battlefield update on Sunday.
BARGAINING CHIP
Ukraine's unexpected success in biting off a slice of Russian territory and holding on to it since last August could provide it with an important bargaining chip as both sides gear up for possible peace talks this year.
Both have been striving to improve their battlefield positions before US President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in on Jan. 20. Trump has repeatedly said he will bring a quick end to the war, but without saying how.
By committing some of its most effective units to the Kursk offensive, Ukraine has, however, weakened the defense of its own eastern regions where Russian forces have advanced since August at their most rapid pace since 2022.
The Ukrainian military said on Saturday that the "hottest" front was near Pokrovsk, an important road and rail hub towards which Russia has been pressing for months.
On Sunday, Ukraine's air defenses shot down 61 out of 103 drones launched by Russia in an overnight attack, the air force said. Russia said it had destroyed five Ukrainian drones over Russian territory.