China launched live fire on Taiwan on the second day of exercises aimed at isolating the island
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China launched 10 hours of live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, sending new attack ships alongside bombers and warships on the second day of its largest-ever war games aimed at recapturing the island.
Taiwan said it was putting troops on alert and called the Chinese government a “big destroyer of peace.”
The Eastern Theater Command said the exercises will take place until 6 p.m. (5:00 a.m. ET) in the sea and airspace of five areas around Taiwan, and that naval and air force units are conducting strikes on maritime and air targets and anti-submarine operations toward the democratically-ruled island in the north and south of the island.
Aviation authorities in Taiwan said more than 100,000 international air travelers would be affected by flight cancellations or diversions, with only the northeast corridor to Japan open to commercial flights. Passages to the offshore islands of Kinmen and Matsu off the coast of China have been closed.
Big tests so far
China’s Maritime Safety Administration on Monday designated two more locations for live firing, making the “Justice Mission 2025” exercises the largest to date with full integration and closer to Taiwan than previous exercises.
The military exercises began 11 days after the US announced a record $11.1 billion US arms package to Taiwan, sparking anger from China’s defense ministry and warnings that the military would “take strong measures” in response.
The exercises – the sixth major round of Chinese military games since 2022, when the speaker of the US house at the time, Nancy Pelosi, visited the democratic island – are aimed at re-encircling the island to destroy its weapons and to prevent attempts to retake Taiwan from Japan or nearby US bases, analysts said.
“This is a clear provocation of the international situation,” said a Taiwanese security official, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. “As the most important shipping lane in the world, they want to reshape the international order according to their agenda.”
US $ 2.45 trillion in trade passes through the Taiwan Strait each year, while the airport above the island serves as a connecting point between China, the world’s second largest economy, and the fast-growing markets of East and Southeast Asia.
The official said Taipei was closely monitoring whether China would seek “further provocation” from Tuesday’s drills, including missiles flying over Taiwan, similar to China’s 2022.
“China is trying to make progress in asserting sovereignty over all the islands by using high-pressure tactics in various ways,” the official said.
Taiwan’s government says it has put its forces on alert as China strengthens its military presence in the Indo-Pacific Ocean and launches air force, navy and missile training on the island.
China’s military said it had commissioned destroyers, bombers and other units to conduct maritime attack, air defense and anti-submarine warfare operations on Tuesday, to “test the capabilities of naval and air forces to coordinate coordination and control.”
Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense said 130 Chinese military aircraft and 22 naval and coast guard ships were operating across the island in the 24 hours before 6 a.m. Tuesday, with 90 aircraft crossing the median line that separates the Taiwan Strait.
US President Donald Trump said Monday that he was not notified in advance of the military assistance but was not concerned because China “has been conducting naval exercises in that area for 20 years.” Touting his “great relationship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump suggested he did not think Xi would attack Taiwan.
Taiwan rejects China’s claims of national unity, maintaining that only its people can decide the island’s future.
