Warships from the U.S. 7th Fleet staked out the international waters around Taiwan Monday, even as China warned the United States to stay out of its sovereignty dispute with the island.
Share prices plunged as investors grew alarmed over China's plans to follow up missile tests off Taiwan's main ports with live-ammunition war games off the island, starting Tuesday.Tensions between Taiwan and China are at their highest in 15 years as China seeks to quell independence sentiment on the island with a military show of force. Beijing considers Taiwan a renegade province to be retaken by force if necessary, and it wants Taiwanese voters to remember that when they go to the polls March 23.
Calling China's attempt to intimidate Taiwan "reckless," Secretary of State Warren Christopher announced the dispatch of a battle group led by the USS Independence.
The destroyer Hewitt and guided-missile frigate McClusky joined the Independence north of Taiwan Monday, the 7th Fleet said from Yokosuka, Japan. The guided-missile cruiser Bunker Hill took up a position south of the island to monitor China's missile tests, the Navy said.
The United States intends the warships to be "in a position to be helpful, if they need to be," Christopher said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen warned the United States to stay out of the dispute.
"Taiwan is a part of China and not a protectorate of the United States," Qichen told reporters. "If foreign forces invade Taiwan . . . we will not sit idly by."
Christopher did not say how the United States would respond if China were to attack Taiwan, or how close to Taiwan the battle group would go. The 7th Fleet said all the vessels were in international waters.
Jason Hu, a Taiwanese government spokesman, said the U.S. decision to send warships toward Taiwan was "to maintain peace and not to intervene" in the dispute.
"We are not hoping for war, so any acts conducive to peace will be welcome," he said.
China has begun air and sea rehearsals for the eight-day exercise, Hu quoted air force chief Tang Fei as telling a Cabinet meeting. He gave no details.
He also said Tang believed China might follow up with a separate amphibious landing exercise.
Taiwan's main stock index fell 98.08 points, or 2 percent, closing at 4,711.43. Taiwan's financial markets have plunged repeatedly since July, when China began the first of three rounds of missile tests.
"Investors are worried that China has pushed their military threats to the extreme, and if tension continues to escalate, the next move would be war," said Thomas Chien, president of Wardley James Capel Ltd.
Japan on Monday made its strongest statement yet over the military activity, calling on China to use "self-restraint."
Japanese Foreign Ministry representative Ryozo Kato met Chinese Embassy counselor Zheng Xianglin and said the exercises were not a good sign, according to a ministry official who declined to be named.