China surrounded Taiwan with major military exercises on Monday — in what Beijing said was a “stern warning” following the US approval of a large arms sale to the democratic island.
The Chinese military announced its naval and air forces would “approach the island in close proximity” and carry out “blockade and control” maneuvers, before conducting live-fire drills on Tuesday in the waters around Taiwan as part of “Justice Mission 2025,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
Some 89 Chinese aircraft, including drones, along with 14 navy and 14 coast guard vessels were spotted off the Taiwanese coast as of 3 p.m. Monday local time, Taiwan’s military said.
China’s military dispatched air, navy, and missile units to conduct joint live-fire drills around the island of Taiwan, which Beijing called a “stern warning” against “external interference” forces. AP
A bomber takes off from an undisclosed location for drills east of Taiwan, in this screenshot from a video released by the Eastern Theatre Command of China’s People’s Liberation Army on December 29, 2025. via REUTERSAccording to the People’s Liberation Army, the dramatic drills were intended as a warning for Taiwan — which the Chinese Communist Party considers a breakaway providence that must be reunited with the central government, by force if necessary.
Taiwan’s military vowed Monday to “be prepared to defend ourselves,” and announced that it had deployed forces and initiated rapid-response drills.
The drill zones designated by China infringed the legal jurisdiction for the island of 23 million people, the Taiwanese military said.
Beijing considers Taiwanese affairs to be an internal matter, while Taipei asserts it is an indepnent government.
Chinese helicopters on an amphibious assault ship during military drills southeast of Taiwan, according to reports. via REUTERS“On the one hand, we ensure Taiwan independence forces have nowhere to escape. On the other hand, we make sure external aid can’t get in,” Meng Xiangqing, a commentator on Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, said Monday.
China’s drills delayed and canceled flights into and out of Taiwan, with more than 100,000 travelers impacted, the island nation’s civil-aviation authority said on Monday.
An alert notice from Beijing designating a “temporary danger area” was sent to Taiwanese authorities.
China frequently carries out similar large-scale military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, a 100-mile-wide body of water separating the two nations.
Beijing sends warplanes and navy vessels toward the island on a near-daily basis, and in recent years, it has stepped up the scope and scale of these exercises, according to reports. via REUTERSTaiwan regards such drills as “gray-zone” rehearsals intended to pressure the government into submitting to Beijing to avoid a war.
It classifies the maneuvers, the last of which took place in April, as practice that could easily become a real-life attack.
Although Washington is committed to arming Taiwan for its self-defense, US policy on whether it would intervene militarily to protect the island remains ambiguous.
Monday’s drills come days after President Trump approved a record arms sale package to Taiwan.
The approvals, valued at over $11 billion, were followed by the imposition of sanctions by Beijing on Friday targeting 20 US defense companies and 10 executives.
