MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Taipei accuses Beijing of “using external problems to relieve domestic pressure”

In the last month, Taiwan has reported three nearby Chinese air force drills, and in two cases Taiwanese fighter jets scrambled to intercept them. (Referencial Image)

China is pressuring Taiwan with “provocative” air force maneuvers near the island and spreading fake news to sow discord during the coronavirus outbreak, security sources and government officials in Taiwan say.

The epidemic has strained already poor ties between Taipei and Beijing, with Taiwan especially angry at China’s efforts to block its participation at the World Health Organization (WHO).

The two governments have also argued about the fate of about 1,000 Taiwanese stranded in Wuhan, the outbreak’s epicenter, and China has made no obvious moves to respond to offers of help to fight the virus from Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen.

Tsai won re-election by a landslide in January, pledging to stand up to Beijing. China believes she wants to push for formal independence for the island, which it claims as its own. Tsai denies that, saying Taiwan is already an independent nation called the Republic of China, its official name.

In the last month, Taiwan has reported three nearby Chinese air force drills, and in two cases Taiwanese fighter jets scrambled to intercept them.

Last week, Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian, answering a question on the recent drills, said Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party was “playing with fire” and that any attempt at independence was “doomed to fail”.

China’s actions have provoked anger in Taiwan, which has told Beijing it should focus on fighting the virus.

“Xi Jinping is trying to make the point that he is still in control of the military,” Wang Ting-yu, a member of the Taiwan parliament’s defense committee, told Reuters. “China is using external problems to relieve domestic pressure.”

Accompanying the military moves has been what Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu has called a cyber “war” of fake news from China about the virus.

The fake reports, which Taiwan’s government has quickly knocked down, include false claims that the island is covering up the true number of cases - officially at 41 and one death - and that Tsai has been infected.

Taiwan says many posts include expressions only used in China, as well as simplified Chinese characters, which are not used on the island.

Taiwan’s Investigation Bureau has also warned that China is trying to undermine trust in factual news - and disrupt disease-control measures - by portraying Taiwan’s official announcements on the outbreak as Chinese-made fake news.