Defeated Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. China claims Taiwan as its sacred territory, is estimated by Taiwan to aim hundreds of missiles at the island over a narrow stretch of water and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. China carried out rare live-fire drills in the sensitive strait that separates the two sides in September, though Taiwan’s defense ministry described them at the time as routine.

Blanchard, B., Hung, F. (2016, January 18). South China Sea? for Beijing, Taiwan is no. 1 security issue. Malaya, pp. B4, B5.