China Launches Largest-Ever Military Drills Around Taiwan Amid U.S. Arms Boost

China launched its largest-ever live-fire military exercises around Taiwan on Monday, encircling the island with warships, aircraft and missile units in drills that simulated a blockade of key ports and disrupted flights for more than 100,000 air passengers, according to Taiwanese officials.bbc +1 The operation, codenamed “Justice Mission 2025,” followed an $11.1 billion U.S. arms package for Taiwan, the biggest on record.euronews

Beijing’s Eastern Theatre Command said the joint maneuvers, involving army, navy, air force and rocket forces, were a “stern warning” to “Taiwan independence” forces and to “external interference,” as Chinese authorities designated a record seven sea and air zones around the island for live firing and navigation restrictions.bbc +1 Taiwan condemned the drills as a “unilateral provocation,” placed its forces on high alert and conducted rapid-response exercises in parallel.biz

Blockade Rehearsal and a New Level of Military Pressure

Taiwan’s defence ministry reported 89 Chinese military aircraft operating near the island and between 14 and 28 naval and coast guard vessels surged into surrounding waters, figures that analysts said underscored China’s ability to rapidly mass forces in a crisis.bbc +1 The drills included simulated strikes on land and sea targets and scenarios aimed at “sealing off” Taiwan’s northern port of Keelung and the southern hub of Kaohsiung, rehearsing a potential blockade that could cut the island off from trade and outside military support.euronews +1

Civilian air traffic felt the impact quickly: Taiwan’s aviation authorities warned that more than 100,000 international passengers and several thousand domestic travelers would face delays or rerouting as airlines adjusted routes to avoid Chinese exclusion zones.france24 Taipei also publicised images of U.S.-made HIMARS rocket systems, with a range of around 300 km, in what one Taiwanese analyst described as an effort to show Beijing that “our armed forces operate on the principle of preparing for the worst.”bbc +1

U.S.–Japan Tensions, Strategic Signaling and Escalation Risks

The exercises came 11 days after Washington approved the $11.1 billion weapons package for Taiwan and days after Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested Japanese forces could intervene if a Chinese blockade threatened Japan’s security, comments that drew sharp criticism from Beijing.euronews +1 Chinese officials framed “Justice Mission 2025” as a response to both moves, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian insisting that “any sinister schemes to obstruct China’s reunification are doomed to fail.”bloomberg

U.S. and allied officials criticized the drills as destabilizing and coercive, while regional security experts warned that the growing scale and frequency of Chinese exercises risk normalizing high-tempo operations that could mask preparations for an actual attack.reuters Analysts also highlighted the stakes for global supply chains, particularly semiconductors, and for freedom of navigation through one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes should such blockade scenarios move from rehearsal to reality.bloomberg +1

The Bigger Picture

“Justice Mission 2025” marked the sixth major round of Chinese war games around Taiwan since 2022 and, by geographic coverage, the most extensive, underscoring both the pace of the People’s Liberation Army’s modernization and Beijing’s willingness to use military drills as a tool of political pressure.bbc +1 With Taiwan hardening its defences, the U.S. expanding arms support and Japan more openly tying its own security to a Taiwan contingency, the latest encirclement exercise deepened a pattern of action–reaction that leaves the region more militarized, crisis-prone and dependent on careful management to avoid a miscalculation spiralling into conflict.

bbc Reuters, Dec. 29, 2025
euronews Reuters, Dec. 18 & 29, 2025
france24 France24 / Taiwan aviation authorities, Dec. 29, 2025
bloomberg BBC / Al Jazeera, Dec. 29, 2025
biz Taiwan Presidential Office, Central News Agency, Dec. 29, 2025
cbsnews Reuters interview with Taiwan defence officials, Dec. 29, 2025
rfa Japan Times, Nov. 13 & Dec. 29, 2025
reuters Financial Times / Crisis Group analysis, Dec. 29, 2025