Chinese seaside tourists brush off military drills over Taiwan

Chinese tourists on an island near Taiwan sunned themselves and snapped seaside selfies on Saturday, unaware — or at least unbothered — by Beijing’s launch of major military drills in the strait beyond. 

Brandishing colourful flags and shouting through microphones, tour guides corralled throngs of day-trippers along the coast of Pingtan, a scenic isle that is the closest point on the mainland to Taiwan, the democratic island China claims as its own.

Beijing announced three days of military drills around Taiwan starting Saturday morning, indicating they were retaliation for Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen’s recent visit to the United States. 

But reactions on Pingtan were muted, with the sounds of the strong breeze and rolling ocean pierced only by holidaymakers’ excited chatter and the whistles of guards warding off those who strayed too close to the rocky shore. 

“I saw the news, but it’s not going to stop our plans for today,” said Wu, a visitor of about 30 years old who was strolling the coastal path with his partner. 

“Relations with Taiwan aren’t great at the moment, but they’re stable. We hope for peaceful reunification,” he told AFP. 

Others said they had not heard about the drills or shrugged off their importance. 

“What situation? There’s nothing going on,” a woman in her 20s said, walking off without giving her name. 

AFP did not see any military vessels transiting the waters off Pingtan on Saturday morning, though a tugboat and several army helicopters were spotted on Friday afternoon and evening. 

A handful of cargo boats cruised through the waters about a kilometre offshore, while tourists in sunglasses and baseball caps crowded around art installations themed around the island’s proximity to Taiwan. 

The drills “are just a few preventive measures being taken by the government”, said Lin, a man of around 50, adding he hoped China and Taiwan would unify one day. 

“As an average person, I just hope that the mainland does well, and Taiwan does well too,” he told AFP. “We’re one big family.”