In Pictures

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game

China, US deploy warships over Taiwan and South China Sea in what risks a military confrontation.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game

By Danylo Hawaleshka

History Illustrated is a weekly series of insightful perspectives that puts news events and current affairs into historical context using graphics generated with artificial intelligence.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Whoever came up with the term “war games” must have had a dark sense of humour. Widely used to describe the military exercises in the South China Sea, there’s nothing fun or entertaining about the war “games” staged lately around Taiwan.

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The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Those games are being played in large part because Taiwan isn’t recognised as a country. It’s a self-governing territory that China says belongs to it, while the US favours leaving things as they are.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Starting in the mid-17th century, Taiwan was controlled by China for 200 years, up until the turn of the 20th century, when Japan took over for 50 years before losing it back to China in World War II.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — China’s civil war, which started in 1927 and ended in 1949, also played a role when the Communists won and the nationalists escaped to Taiwan. For a time, those nationalists in Taiwan were even recognised by the UN as the true representatives of China.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Since then, Taiwan’s developed into a mature democracy, but lost its status at the UN in 1971, when China’s communist-led government was recognised as the only lawful representative of China.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Recently, China launched its largest-ever naval exercises with an aircraft carrier, the Shandong, in the western Pacific.

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The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Taiwan’s defence ministry said more than 20 Chinese warships joined the Shandong in waters around Taiwan, the Philippines and Guam.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Analysts described China’s actions as an angry response to similar manoeuvres by the US and its allies.

The battle for Taiwan is anything but a game — Today, the region around Taiwan and the South China Sea bristles with weaponry, a place where the world’s militaries play their so-called war games. And yet, it’s the furthest thing from a game that anyone could imagine.