Chinese armed forces have surrounded Taiwan in a major live-fire practice exercise for invading, seizing and blockading the country.
The operation, named “Justice Mission 2025”, involves the army, navy, air force and rocket force – all of which are spread across five zones off the Taiwanese coast.
Beijing’s Eastern Theatre Command described the exercise as a “shield of justice” in a social media post.
“All those plotting independence will be annihilated upon encountering the shield!” the statement declared.
Major drills are scheduled for Tuesday between 8am and 6pm local time.
Taiwan’s defence ministry said it detected Chinese aircraft and vessels near its waters on Monday morning.
Taipei has responded by deploying its own military forces and missile systems to monitor the situation.
It stated its forces remain on “high alert” to defend Taiwan and “protect our people”.
Taiwan’s presidential office condemned the Chinese exercises as a challenge to international norms.
President Lai Ching-te had said in a television interview as recently as Sunday that Taiwan must “keep raising the difficulty so [China] can never meet the standard” for an invasion.
PICTURED: Xi Jinping and Emmanuel Macron in China. President Xi’s forces surrounded Taiwan in a major live-fire drill this morning
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GETTY
He added that his Government was committed to “maintaining the status quo” and would not provoke Beijing, though peace depends on “real strength”.
Beijing claims Taiwan as its territory and has long called for “peaceful reunification” with the self-ruled island.
However, Chinese law permits “non-peaceful means” to prevent what it terms “secession”.
The Chinese Government has accused President Lai of pursuing independence for Taiwan.
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China’s military published a video on Monday showing warships being deployed in the Taiwan Strait
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CHINESE EASTERN THEATRE COMMAND
Mr Lai maintains Taiwan is already a sovereign nation and therefore does not need to formally declare independence.
Public opinion surveys consistently show most Taiwanese prefer the status quo, rejecting both unification with China and formal independence declarations.
Military exercises in the Taiwan Strait have ramped up since 2022, typically following events Beijing views as provocative.
Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit in 2022 and Lai’s inauguration in 2024 both triggered Chinese military responses.
This week’s exercises also aim to deter forces “outside the island chain”, according to China’s military.
PICTURED: Chinese military maps showing the five drill locations surrounding Taiwan’s coast
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CCTV
Beijing’s military action comes days after Washington approved an £8.2bn weapons package for Taiwan – which itself followed a bitter spat between China and Japan.
Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi suggested last month that Japan’s self-defence forces could intervene if China attacked Taiwan.
China responded with vicious words – and warned its citizens against travelling to Japan.
And earlier this month, Tokyo lodged a formal complaint after Chinese fighter jets locked their radars onto Japanese aircraft.
Beijing accused Japan of “harassing” its forces during a training exercise.
