China deployed warships, bombers and ground forces around Taiwan on Tuesday, the second day of a historic war game menacing the Beijing-claimed island.
The simulated war exercises — dubbed “Justice Mission 2025” by Chinese leaders—involved first-ever deployments of some military craft, and is seen by some analysts as a response to a record $11.1 billion U.S.-Taiwan weapons package announced earlier in December, NBC News reported. The war games began Monday without the knowledge or consent of the United States, a key pledged ally of Taiwan.
President Donald Trump told reporters Monday that the exercises “did not worry him,” according to NBC News, adding that China has “been doing naval exercises for 20 years in that area.”
Lai Ching-te, President of the Republic of China (ROC), the official name of the Taiwanese government, said of the exercises that his country “will steadfastly defend our freedom against coercion.”
“China’s military provocations along the First Island Chain severely disrupt global maritime trade, air traffic & regional peace,” Lai said on X Tuesday. “Taiwan continues to act responsibly, neither escalating tensions nor yielding to threats.”
Chinese state-owned media outlet XinHua said of the war exercises on Tuesday: “Public opinion in Taiwan has expressed concerns that the continuous provocations by the island’s leader, Lai Ching-te, who has repeatedly colluded with external forces to seek ‘Taiwan independence’ while disregarding public sentiment, are pushing Taiwan toward the brink of war.”
The exercises, the propaganda outlet said, are “seen as a stern response to Lai’s attempts to seek ‘independence’ by force and relying on external forces, and a countermeasure against external interference in China’s internal affairs.”
ROC Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo said Tuesday “[T]he [People’s Liberation Army’s] provocative actions threaten regional stability and civilian traffic. Following the president’s guidance, the #ROCArmedForces will respond calmly and safeguard our nation’s security and democracy.”
The new war games are being conducted on all sides of the island, and include firing long-range artillery, deployments of bombers, fighter jets, warships, drones, and missile units, the New York Times reported Tuesday. A novel amphibious assault ship also saw a first-ever deployment in the effort.
China, as Trump noted in his Monday remarks, has conducted a number of such exercises around Taiwan in the past years. Most recently, China launched a two-day operation in April 2025 dubbed “Straight Thunder” in response to hostile rhetoric from Taiwanese President Lai. In 2024, China conducted two major exercises also in response to Lai’s leadership.
In 2022, then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan against Beijing’s disapproval, after which China deployed missiles over Taiwan, an escalation that this week’s war games have yet to see.
The $11.1 billion arms package the U.S. announced for Taiwan on Dec. 18 included medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, the Associated Press (AP) reported at the time. China Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun claimed the deal turns “Taiwan into a powder keg,” according to the AP.
“This cannot save the doomed fate of ‘Taiwan independence’ but will only accelerate the push of the Taiwan Strait toward a dangerous situation of military confrontation and war,” Guo said. “The U.S. support for ‘Taiwan Independence’ through arms will only end up backfiring. Using Taiwan to contain China will not succeed.”
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
