China staged military drills off Taiwan’s north, south and east coasts on Tuesday as a “stern warning” against separatism and called Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te a

Taiwan has long been the most tense flashpoint between Washington and Beijing. By law, the U.S. is required to help Taiwan defend its democracy. This week, China’s People’s Liberation Army launched new drills and sent ships around Taiwan.

China considers democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and calls Lai a "separatist." In a video accompanying its announcement, the Eastern Theatre Command called him a "parasite" in ...