Taipei, May 26 (CNA) The artillery exercises presently being carried out by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in Fujian Province are part of routine annual drills and do not signal a threat from the mainland, said the Ministry of National Defense (MND) on Friday.
The PLA is staging routine artillery drills from May 25 to 31 in a 160 square kilometer coastal area between Quanzhou Bay and Shenfu Bay in Fujian Province -- which is opposite the ROC-controlled frontline island of Kinmen, MND spokesman Maj. Gen. Kung Fan-ding said.
Kung quoted military intelligence sources as saying that the PLA forces stationed in the Nanjing Military Region and the coast guard forces of Fujian Province began holding joint artillery drills and related military exercises in 1996 in Lienjiang, Shihshih, and Dongshan in order to sharpen the mainland's combat readiness.
The annual drills are usually held in April and May, Kung noted, stressing the routine nature of the drills and urging the Taiwanese public not to panic.
Kung added that the people of Taiwan should increase their "psychological defenses" and view the mainland Chinese military activities in a cool and rational manner.
Most important, he said, citizens of Taiwan should have confidence in the ability of the government and the armed forces to safeguard Taiwan's security.
Meanwhile, sources from Kinmen said the only civilian airport on Kinmen was closed on Friday because of thick fog which has blanketed the entire island area since the early morning, resulting in poor visibility.
Shangyi airport authorities said normal flights may resume in the afternoon if the fog clears later in the day.
Visibility was as low 100 meters at around 7:00 a.m., gradually increasing to about 1,000 meters by 10:00 a.m., still below the minimum visibility of 3,200 for safe aircraft takeoff and landings, they said, adding that the airport closing has nothing to do with the PLA's on-going military exercises. (By Deborah Kuo)
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