The U.S., Japan, the European Union and other nations responded immediately to the large two-day military drill conducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) around the island of Taiwan, complaining about China’s “destabilizing” behavior and attempts to “change the status quo.” Exemplary was the statement issued by State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce that the PLA drills “only serve to exacerbate tensions and put the region’s security and the world’s prosperity at risk” adding that Washington “opposes unilateral changes to the status quo, including through force or coercion.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was more measured, saying that President Trump “is emphasizing the importance of maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait, encouraging the peaceful resolution of these cross strait issues, [and] reiterating our opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.”