China will 'fight to the very end' to stop Taiwanese independence, the country's defense minister vowed on Sunday, stoking already soaring tensions with the United States over the island.
The superpowers are locked in a growing war of words over the self-ruled, democratic island, which Beijing views as part of its territory awaiting reunification.
Frequent Chinese aerial incursions near Taiwan have raised the diplomatic temperature, and on Saturday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin accused Beijing of 'destabilizing' military activity in a speech to the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit.
Defence Minister Wei Fenghe hit back in a fiery address at the same event, saying Beijing had 'no choice' but to fight if attempts are made to separate Taiwan from China.
'We will fight at all cost, and we will fight to the very end,' he said. 'No one should ever underestimate the resolve and ability of the Chinese armed forces to safeguard its territorial integrity.'
On Friday, similarly fiery language was used by the communist state who threatened war against anyone who dared to interfere, in order to defend its right to keep Taiwan from becoming an independent state.
China will 'smash to smithereens any Taiwan independence plot and resolutely uphold the unification of the motherland' Fenghe told U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of the conference.
'If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter the cost', Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Wu Qian quoted the Fenghe as saying during the meeting, in what is an escalating of tensions, not least of which in the type of language being used.
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