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BEIJING, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The People's Liberation Army on Thursday began two-day drills around the Taiwan Island. This came just days after Lai Ching-te, Taiwan's new leader, made his debut speech filled with hostility and provocations of seeking "Taiwan independence," adopting an even riskier and more radical approach than his predecessors. His ill-advised speech constituted a serious provocation against the one-China principle and inevitably triggered resolute countermeasures. The drills are legitimate, timely and entirely necessary, as "Taiwan independence" acts in any form cannot be tolerated. People across the Taiwan Strait have been yearning for the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations, which kept deteriorating in the past eight years. They also long for the return of friendly exchanges and cooperation. Ignoring these expectations, Lai has deliberately incited hatred toward the mainland and escalated confrontation and hostility across the Strait. It is an attempt to bind the innocent people of Taiwan to the "Taiwan independence" chariot, which will only push Taiwan further to the brink of war. Lai, in his speech, did not conceal his eagerness to sell out Taiwan to external forces. This was his attempt to seek external support for his "Taiwan independence" maneuver. Strong deterrent measures are imperative to draw the red line. If "Taiwan independence" schemers are indulged in colluding with external forces to create chaos, it will bring the most dangerous change to the status quo across the Strait and the most severe damage to the prospects of peaceful reunification. The Taiwan question is at the very core of China's core interests. Resolutely safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity is the common will of the 1.4 billion Chinese people. It should be noted that the countermeasures are aimed at a very small number of "Taiwan independence" separatists and their separatist activities, and are by no means targeted at the Taiwan compatriots. Reunification is the trend of history and the right path. "Taiwan independence" is a short-lived countercurrent and will lead nowhere. The severer the provocations are, the stronger the countermeasures will be. Any attempt to split the Chinese territory will be resolutely opposed by all Chinese, and will inevitably be crushed by the wheels of history moving forward. 

（Editor:Liao Yifan）