Update(1408ET): The Chinese government’s English language mouthpiece Global Times has grown particularly loud and bellicose in response to Nancy Pelosi’s potential trip to the self-ruled island of Taiwan:
“Get ready for war!” read a message posted by China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) 80th Group over the US visit to Taiwan, as reported on Friday, July 29. China’s Army’s war message over the potential US visit to Taiwan reportedly generated over 300,000 thumbs-up in just 12 hours, creating “high morale among Chinese soldiers” according to Global Times.
“Preparing for War(备战）！”
The official #Weibo account of the 80th Army Group of the #CCP' People's Liberation Army #PLA posted this two-Chinese-word post 15 hours ago and has gained 650K likes, 32K comments, and 28K shares so far. pic.twitter.com/voEJ3BHFn6— Inconvenient Truths by Jennifer Zeng 曾錚真言 (@jenniferzeng97) July 29, 2022
I'd rather translate it as preparing for war. 备means prepare, get ready for, 战 means war. Of course, it can also mean action. But this is an account of PLA.
— 曾錚真言 (@JenniferZeng15) July 29, 2022
GT further reminds its audience that, possibly corresponding with a Pelosi Taiwan visit (assuming she goes through with it), the country will celebrate the 95th anniversary of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) military…
The 80th Group Army posted a comment saying, “we must bear in mind the fundamental responsibility of preparing for war and charge on the journey of a strong army.” The comment has received 8,000 thumbs-up.
…Ahead of the 95th anniversary of the founding of the PLA on August 1, Xi, also the general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the need for further implementing the strategy of strengthening the armed forces by training competent personnel in the new era, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Friday.
At the same time, prominent GT pundit and the publication’s former editor, Hu Xijin, has claimed the Chinese military “has the right” to block Pelosi’s plane and any US fighter jet escorts from Taiwan’s airspace (which China claims as its own).
This after he has in past days reported that Beijing considers “all options, including military ones” to be on the table:
https://twitter.com/HuXijin_GT/status/1553054547970760704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1553054547970760704%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fgeopolitical%2Fpelosi-leading-delegation-asia-taiwan-stop-not-clear