Since October, there have already been multiple rounds of words of war over the Taiwan question, ranging from provocative remarks such as Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen's admission of the presence of US military personnel in Taiwan to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's statement on prompting Taiwan to participate in UN affairs.

Anybody who understands the ABCs of politics could sense the tensions over the Taiwan Straits.

That's why the visit by six US lawmakers, including four senators and two members of the House of Representatives, to Taipei on a military plane on Tuesday should be interpreted as a new provocative move. They understand fully how tense the situation is but still choose to add oil to the fire, and the only explanation for their move lies in their nefarious intention to seek trouble.

By choosing this risky move, the US lawmakers might mean to voice their support for the secessionists on the island. The deep contrast of forces on the two sides of the Taiwan Straits cannot be more evident, which has already caused many secessionists in Taiwan to give up any illusion. The arrival of a US military plane carrying six lawmakers might serve as a silver bullet for them.

However, that's a rather heavy challenge to peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and poses a direct threat to the 23 million residents on the island. On Tuesday, exactly after the trip by the six US lawmakers was made public, the PLA Eastern Theater Command issued a statement saying it has organized a "joint combat readiness patrol" in the direction of the Taiwan Straits to further examine and improve the joint combat capability of its forces.

The attitude of the central government is clear: Taiwan is part of China, and the one-China principle must never be violated. China has the determination and capability to defeat any attempt by Taiwan to secede from the motherland.

A peaceful reunification is in the common interests of the Chinese people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, and only certain US politicians and their pawns and claws in Taiwan do not want it for their narrow political interests. Time for the Taiwan people to see that clearly, so as to avoid being dragged into their evil plot.