China opposes Taiwan-U.S. defence and military exchanges

China warned against continued U.S.-Taiwan cooperation Wednesday, responding to reports that the U.S. military was sending officers to help train Taiwan’s counterparts and that a delegation of defence contractors would visiting the self-ruled island next week.

China warned against continued U.S.-Taiwan cooperation Wednesday, responding to reports that the U.S. military was sending officers to help train Taiwan's counterparts and that a delegation of defence contractors would visiting the self-ruled island next week.

“We resolutely oppose the U.S. having any form of official or military contact with China's Taiwan region,” Zhu Fenglian, spokeswoman for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said at a weekly press briefing in Beijing.

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Taiwan and China split in 1949 after a civil war. Taiwan never has been part of the People's Republic of China, but the Communist Party says it is obliged to unite with the mainland, by force if necessary.

President Xi Jinping's government has flown fighter jets and bombers near Taiwan in increasing numbers and fired missiles into the sea in an attempt to intimidate the island.

Taiwanese media reported this month that the U.S. had sent 200 military personnel, mostly Marines, to help train Taiwan troops. Taiwan's Defence Ministry has neither denied nor confirmed the report.

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