Taiwan

Ministry of National Defense: The dead end of "Taiwan independence" cannot be won through drills or changed

国防部：“台独”死局演不赢、改不了

PLA Daily (解放军报) 14 August 2026

Summary

MND spokesperson Senior Colonel Chen Xi, responding to questions about Taiwan's Han Kuang Exercise No. 42 on August 14, dismissed the drill as a 'posturing, wasteful charade' and characterized Lai Ching-te's rehearsed evacuation route as evidence of 'fake defense, real flight,' while invoking two stock formulas — 枕戈待旦 ('weapons in hand, ready to act') and 稳固底牌 ('solid trump card') — to assert continuous PLA readiness. The statement documents the standard MND rhetorical response to Taiwan's annual capstone exercise, but the specific mockery of Lai's personal evacuation planning and the accusation that Taipei is 'accelerating the transformation of cities into battlefields' extends the framing beyond generic deterrence language toward delegitimizing Taiwan's civil defense preparations as provocations rather than defensive measures.

Translation

On the afternoon of August 14, Senior Colonel Chen Xi, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, released a statement on recent military-related issues.

Reporter: According to reports, during this year's Taiwan "Han Kuang Exercise No. 42," Lai Ching-te rehearsed a "wartime escape" route, and the Taiwan military experienced accidents including tank parts falling off and a fighter jet overrunning a runway. Simulated communications slowdowns and staged internet outages triggered panic among the public. What is your comment on this?

Chen Xi: The so-called "Han Kuang Exercise" has always been a posturing, wasteful charade, and this year it has made even clearer to us the cowardly nature of Lai Ching-te — fake defense, real flight. The Democratic Progressive Party authorities are also recklessly stoking war panic, accelerating the transformation of cities into battlefields and pushing civilians to the front lines, disrupting social order in Taiwan and harming the safety and well-being of ordinary people. We solemnly warn the Democratic Progressive Party authorities: the dead end of "Taiwan independence" cannot be won through drills or changed. The People's Liberation Army stands ready with weapons in hand (枕戈待旦), prepared for real action at this very moment, continuously enhancing its actual combat capabilities for counter-separatism and counter-interference, and remains at all times the solid trump card (稳固底牌) for safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity and maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

Original Chinese

8月14日下午，国防部新闻发言人陈曦大校就近期涉军问题发布消息。记者：据报道，今年台“汉光42号演习”期间，赖清德演练“战时逃亡”路线，台军发生坦克零件掉落、战机冲出跑道等事故，模拟通信降速、阶段性断网引发民众恐慌。请问对此有何评论？陈曦：所谓“汉光演习”从来都是装腔作势、劳民伤财的把戏，今年更让我们看清了赖清德假防卫、真逃跑的胆怯本性。民进党当局还肆意妄为地制造战争恐慌，加速把城市变战场、让民众上前线，破坏台湾社会安宁，损害老百姓安全福祉。正告民进党当局，“台独”死局演不赢、改不了。解放军枕戈待旦备实当下，持续提升反分裂反干涉实战能力，始终是捍卫国家主权和领土完整、维护台海和平稳定的稳固底牌。