China’s state broadcaster said naval formations had conducted “live-ammunition shooting exercises involving multiple weapons” in waters and airspace to the southwest, north and east of Taiwan at about 9:30am on Monday.
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Accompanying footage showed machine guns on the deck of warships firing into the sea, military aircraft taking off and missiles getting into launch position for what a narrator described as “simulated strikes.”
A total of 89 aircraft appeared near Taiwan as of 3pm, according to Taiwan’s Defence Ministry, of which 67 entered areas that required a response. Officials also recorded 14 PLA vessels as well as 14 Chinese coast guard ships nearby.
Chinese authorities didn’t issue public warnings for Monday’s live-fire exercises, and maritime traffic around the Taiwan Strait – one of the world’s biggest shipping routes – didn’t appear to have been disrupted by the exercises.
Things could look different when the drills enter their second day.
The PLA announced that from 8am to 6pm on Tuesday it would hold live-fire exercises, saying “any irrelevant vessel or aircraft is advised not to enter” the area. China’s maritime authorities listed an extra two large zones where the military would “organise live ammunition.”
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi addresses the media in Tokyo on December 17.Credit: Bloomberg
China’s Defence Ministry did not respond to request for comment on discrepancies in the warning zones.
The areas the Chinese military marked for the exercises were bigger than in the past, according to William Yang, senior analyst for North East Asia at the International Crisis Group.
The PLA is signalling its “intent to enhance its troops’ anti-access and area-denial capabilities, which sends a direct signal to the US and its allies – especially Japan – about Beijing’s determination to block external interference in future contingency over Taiwan.”
Beijing and Tokyo have been at odds since early November, when Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said her nation’s military could theoretically be deployed if China were to attack Taiwan. Beijing reacted fiercely to those remarks, including by placing limits on Chinese tourists travelling to Japan.
The latest drills also come as President Xi Jinping’s widening purge of the military has raised questions about its combat readiness.
“China is getting very, very good at conducting snap exercises to the point where one could happen very quickly,” said Jaime Ocon, a research fellow at Taiwan Security Monitor. “I think that’s very dangerous for Taiwan.”
‘Egregious in Nature’
China’s military is holding drills because “collusion between the US and Taiwan has become frequent and egregious in nature,” an expert told Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account linked to China’s state media.
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In a video posted by the account, Fu Zhengnan – an expert with China’s Academy of Military Sciences — pointed to the size of the US arms package and what he called a shift from defensive to offensive weaponry.
Fu was likely referring to the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS. Those weapons, which Ukraine has used effectively in its fight against Russia, can strike well into China’s southeastern coast. Taiwan first got them last year and started testing them in May 2025.
A spokesperson for Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office said the latest drills are “intended to curb the collusion between ‘Taiwan independence’ forces and external powers to stir up trouble in the Taiwan Strait.”
Beijing has stepped up military intimidation of the democracy of 23 million people since Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te took office in May 2024. China views Taiwan as a breakaway province that must be brought under its control, by force if necessary – a stance Taipei steadfastly rejects.
In an interview, Lai told a television station that Taiwan must “keep raising the difficulty” for any attack by China.
“When we ask our service members to stand on the front lines to defend the country, we must ensure they are provided with weapons in sufficient quantity and of high quality,” he vowed.
Bloomberg
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