China Launches "Exercise" to Simulate Blockading, Invading Taiwan

China launched large-scale live-fire military drills around Taiwan on Monday, simulating a blockade of major ports and key maritime routes in what Beijing described as a “stern warning” to advocates of Taiwanese independence and to foreign powers backing the island.

The exercises, codenamed Justice Mission 2025, involve coordinated operations by China’s army, navy, air force, and rocket forces, alongside patrols by the Chinese coast guard. According to the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command, forces were deployed to approach Taiwan from multiple directions, test rapid maneuvering, and rehearse what it termed “systemic blockade and control” of critical sea and air zones.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry condemned the drills as a sharp escalation that threatens regional stability and civilian navigation. Officials said Taiwanese forces were placed on high alert, with naval and air units dispatched and counter combat-readiness exercises initiated. Taiwan’s coast guard warned that the scope of the Chinese activity posed a serious risk to shipping and fishing operations around the island and its outlying territories.

Chinese statements left little doubt about the political message behind the maneuvers. A spokesperson for the Eastern Theater Command said the drills were aimed at deterring “Taiwan independence separatist forces and external interference forces,” language widely understood as referring to the United States and its allies. Chinese state media reinforced the warning with nationalist imagery and propaganda videos portraying Taiwan under attack and foreign warships retreating.

The timing of the drills has heightened concern in the region. They follow the approval earlier this month of an approximately 11 billion dollar US arms package for Taiwan, one of the largest in years, as well as comments by Japan’s prime minister suggesting Tokyo could become militarily involved if China were to attack the island. Taiwan’s president has also recently pledged to accelerate defense preparations and reach a high level of combat readiness by 2027, moves that have drawn fierce criticism from Beijing.

Military analysts noted that the designated exercise zones appear larger and closer to Taiwan’s main island than in previous drills, and that China explicitly included scenarios aimed at deterring international intervention. Some Chinese aircraft also remained visible on public radar platforms, a move interpreted as deliberate signaling rather than an attempt at concealment.

These are China’s first drills directly targeting Taiwan since April, and the sixth major set of exercises around the island since 2022. Beijing has increasingly used such operations to signal displeasure at political developments it opposes, while steadily normalizing a high level of military pressure around Taiwan.

China claims Taiwan as part of its territory despite never having governed it, and has vowed to bring the island under its control, by force if necessary. Taiwan rejects that claim, insisting it is already a sovereign democracy. Polls consistently show that most Taiwanese prefer maintaining the status quo rather than unification with China or a formal declaration of independence.

The drills also come amid broader diplomatic activity surrounding Taiwan. In recent days, Member of the Knesset Ohad Tal returned from a diplomatic visit to Taiwan, part of growing parliamentary and unofficial engagement between Israel and the self-governing island. While Israel, like most countries, does not maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, such visits are closely watched by Beijing and reflect Taiwan’s expanding outreach to sympathetic partners.

It remains unclear how long Justice Mission 2025 will last or whether it will escalate further. Chinese military officials said live-fire activities would continue into Tuesday, with maritime and airspace closures announced around Taiwan. Regional observers are now watching closely for responses from Washington and other actors, wary that repeated shows of force increase the risk of miscalculation in one of the world’s most sensitive flashpoints.