On December 29, 2025, the Chinese flag was visible at sunset on Pingtan Island, the island closest to Taiwan in East China’s Fujian Province. Photo credit: Adek Berry — AFP/Getty Images
China held large-scale military drills near Taiwan on Monday in a “stern warning” to separatist and “external interference” forces after the Trump administration announced $11.1 billion worth of arms sales to Taiwan earlier this month.
China’s Eastern Theater Command announced that the Chinese military’s “Justice Mission 2025” exercise is the first large-scale exercise held on the island since April. It will include combat readiness and port blockade exercises, including live-fire exercises and simulated land and sea strikes, in seven areas across the island, in part to deter external intervention.
In 1949, the Kuomintang troops fled to Taiwan after being defeated by the Chinese Communist powers, and Taiwan has since implemented autonomy. But China maintains its sovereignty over Taiwan and has long called for the smaller territory to be “unified” with the People’s Republic of China.
Colonel Shi Yi, spokesman for the Eastern Theater Command, said the exercise was a “severe warning to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces and external interference forces” and called the military operation a “necessary” measure to safeguard China’s “sovereignty and national unity.”
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said the exercise “further confirmed” the Chinese Communist Party’s “nature as an aggressor and the biggest destroyer of peace.”
Hsieh Chi-sheng, deputy chief of staff of Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense for intelligence, said China deployed dozens of aircraft and drones around the Taiwan Strait during the exercise. According to Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation, the Chinese military’s actions are expected to affect more than 100,000 passengers on international flights.
Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration said the military drills are expected to last until Tuesday.
Read more: How Trump could avoid a Taiwan war
The drills come as China expresses anger over the recent US arms sales of $11.1 billion to Taiwan, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and Harpoon missile repair-related equipment. The United States previously approved arms sales to Taiwan worth more than $1 billion in November.
Last week, China’s Foreign Ministry imposed sanctions on 20 U.S. defense companies following the arms sale, banning companies such as Boeing from doing business with the global superpower. Under the sanctions, ten executives of these companies are also prohibited from entering or doing business in China.
The State Department notified Congress that it had approved the massive arms sales to Taiwan less than two weeks ago, saying the potential deal “is consistent with the national, economic, and security interests of the United States by supporting the recipient nation’s ongoing efforts to modernize its armed forces and maintain reliable defense capabilities.”
“The proposed sale[s] It will help improve the security of the host country and help maintain political stability, military balance and economic progress in the region. “
Taiwan’s presidential office said at the time it was “sincerely grateful” for the announced sale, while China quickly condemned it, saying it undermined China’s sovereignty and security and undermined peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Contact us Email: letters@time.com.
