Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

Military Review, the professional bimonthly journal of the US Army, in its latest issue published a series of articles on the so-called China's armed invasion of Taiwan. A US Marine Corps captain in his article called for returning the US forces to Taiwan, and another article suggests providing a corps of "two-to-four divisions... against the PLA bridgeheads" and "dispatching an Army heavy corps to Taiwan." 

These articles have triggered a strong response in the island of Taiwan, and the Taiwan secessionist forces have been greatly encouraged. However, some have pointed out that it is unlikely the US military will publicly deploy in Taiwan.

Such discussions in a US military magazine can be regarded as a public opinion war against China. The US is trying to open up new space for the US strategy to exert pressure on China. If the US military does what the magazine has suggested, it not only means the complete end of the US' one-China policy, but will also mean a blatant challenge to China's sovereignty.

The release of such information seems to be carried away. The US and the island of Taiwan must give up all illusions about the redeployment of US troops in Taiwan, because it means nothing but war. The Anti-Secession Law outlined three conditions that would compel China to use force. The second condition is "the development of major incidents that involve the independence of Taiwan from the mainland," and the third condition is "the exhaustion of all options to reach a deal on the peaceful reunification." The redeployment of US troops in Taiwan meets the two conditions. We believe that the PLA will inevitably take military actions to start a just war to liberate Taiwan.

The US now wants to shape the Taiwan Straits as the main front to prevent China's rise, because the Democratic Progress Party (DPP) authorities in Taiwan have completely turned to the US, and thus can be used as a tool. We must warn the DPP authorities not to wrongly believe that US support is safe for them to split China without being punished.

PLA fighter jets recently crossed the so-called middle line of the Taiwan Straits on a large scale, clearly drawing the red line that the US and Taiwan must not further collude. The Global Times has understood that PLA fighter jets were as closest as only seconds away from the coast of Taiwan. They were only one step away from flying over the island of Taiwan.

The Global Times has predicted several times that the PLA fighter jets will fly over the island of Taiwan. The mainland would like to warn the Taiwan authorities that if the US and Taiwan continue to collude, this scenario would be bound to take place. If the Taiwan authorities still believe that the US and Taiwan can adopt "salami slicing" by sending higher-level officials to visit each other, they are making a gamble that will be costly to both of them.

As tensions in the Taiwan Straits spiral, the Taiwan authorities led by Tsai Ing-wen accused the mainland of intimidation, and Washington asserted that the mainland has resorted to high military pressure to unilaterally change the status quo. But the tense situation in the Taiwan Straits began with the Tsai authorities abandoning the 1992 Consensus. This completely breaks the political basis for cross-Straits communication. Meanwhile, the passage of the Taiwan Travel Act by the US breaks away from the US' one-China policy. Safeguarding its territorial integrity has become an urgent task for the Chinese mainland.

When the Tsai authorities scrapped the 1992 Consensus, they "supported democracy and freedom of Taiwan people." When the US violated the three joint communiqués between China and the US to boost "diplomatic" ties with Taiwan and sell arms to Taiwan, it "supported Taiwan's democratic regime." But when the mainland sent its warning through military exercises, it "exercised autocracy and power." Such fallacies will not win support from international law and the international community. 

It is not known how the US and Taiwan will make further provocations, but the response of the mainland is certain. If the US and Taiwan raise the level of officials for engagement, the mainland will firmly respond by sending PLA fighter jets over the island of Taiwan to claim sovereignty. Deployment of the US army to Taiwan means the start of a cross-Straits war. With the Anti-Secession Law in place, Taiwan and the US should be prepared to confront the determination of the 1.4 billion mainland people and the PLA if they step over the red lines.

The mainland has patiently promoted its policy for peaceful reunification for years. However, the Tsai authorities obstinately have walked toward the path of "Taiwan independence" and fallen prey to the US strategy of China containment, bringing the cross-Straits situation closer to a tipping point. If a cross-Straits war eventually breaks out, the Tsai authorities will be the collective sinners to be punished.