TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) 鈥� Great Britain, France and on Wednesday issued a rare joint statement expressing alarm over Chinese activities east of the self-ruled island of Taiwan, where China earlier this month deployed coast guard patrols.
The de-facto embassies of the three European nations in the Taiwanese capital Taipei said the 鈥渘ovel Chinese activity,鈥� which was not specifically identified, endangered regional stability.
China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its breakaway province and has not ruled out the use of force to annex the island, called the maneuvers earlier this month a 鈥渕aritime traffic enforcement and hydrographic survey operation.鈥�
Chinese state media said the activities were 鈥渟ending a pointed warning鈥� to Japan and over an announcement that the countries would discuss their maritime boundaries in waters that Beijing views as its own.
China on Tuesday also sailed its through the Taiwan Strait, the body of water separating China from Taiwan, just hours after Taiwan began a to practice its response to a possible Chinese attack.
鈥淭hese actions 鈦爐hreaten regional stability and the freedom of navigation and safety of international shipping. We reiterate our opposition to any unilateral change to the status quo, particularly by threat or use of force or coercion,鈥� the statement said.
The offices also called for navigational rights and freedoms and respect for the safety of all seafarers.
China鈥檚 Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
China has increased pressure on Taiwan in recent years by sending military vessels and aircraft near the island almost daily and occasionally organizing .
Beijing’s tensions with Tokyo also have increased since Japanese Prime Minister last year suggested the country’s if China takes action against Taiwan.
Taiwan鈥檚 ongoing military drills are aimed at boosting the island鈥檚 combat readiness in case of a Chinese military attack. The exercises are meant to test how rapidly military units can deploy, especially in the face of a possible sudden escalation of Chinese grey-zone warfare, the island鈥檚 Defense Ministry said.
Grey-zone tactics refer to a range of aggressive tactics varying from navy ship patrols to drone flights but fall short of direct combat.
Taiwan said earlier this month that Chinese coast guard ships were harassing commercial vessels near Taiwan by asking them to report their intended routes.
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