China, on Tuesday, April 1, sent its army, navy, air and rocket forces to surround Taiwan for drills Beijing said were aimed at practicing a blockade of the self-ruled island. Taiwan dispatched its own aircraft and ships, deployed land-based missile systems in response to the drills and accused Beijing of being the world's "biggest troublemaker." China insists that democratic Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.
Beijing has increased the deployment of fighter jets and naval vessels around Taiwan in recent years to press its claim of sovereignty, which Taipei rejects. Taiwan's defense ministry said that China had deployed 19 warships around the island in the 24 hours to 6:00 am, including the Shandong aircraft carrier group.
Tensions between China and Taiwan – which are separated by the 180-kilometer Taiwan Strait – have escalated since Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te took office in May 2024. Chinese leaders loathe Lai, who has been more outspoken than his predecessor Tsai Ing-wen in defending Taiwan's sovereignty. Last month, Lai called China a "foreign hostile force" and proposed measures to combat Chinese espionage and infiltration.
Tuesday's exercises were aimed at sending a "stern warning and forceful deterrence" to alleged separatists in Taiwan, Beijing said. They involved "sea-air combat-readiness patrols, joint seizure of comprehensive superiority, assault on maritime and ground targets, and blockade on key areas and sea lanes," said Senior Colonel Shi Yi, spokesman of the Chinese military's Eastern Theater Command. Beijing's armed forces "close in on Taiwan Island from multiple directions," he said.
The Chinese military's Eastern Theater Command – which oversees operations along the Taiwan Strait – shared a graphic with the title "closing in." Another graphic shared by the military depicted Lai as an insect being roasted over an open fire. And a video shared by the military on X-like Weibo showed footage of weapons interspersed with animations of Sun Wukong, the legendary Monkey King from the classic Chinese novel "Journey to the West".
This week's drills are the biggest since February, when Taipei said that China staged a "live-fire" combat drill with aircraft and warships in an area about 40 nautical miles (74 kilometers) off the island's south. Taiwan's military responded by sending forces to "monitor, alert and respond appropriately" – though officials in Taiwan have said no actual firing took place. Beijing, at the time, rejected "pure hype" from Taiwan over what it called "routine training."
China has carried out multiple drills around the island in recent years, often described as rehearsals for a blockade and seizure of the territory. Analysts have speculated that China was more likely to attempt a blockade of Taiwan than launch an all-out invasion, which was riskier and would require a huge military deployment.
Taiwan is a potential flashpoint for conflict between China and the United States, which is the island's most important backer and biggest arms supplier. While the United States is legally bound to provide arms to Taiwan – which Beijing opposes – Washington has long maintained "strategic ambiguity" when it comes to whether it would deploy its military to defend it from a Chinese attack.
There have been concerns in Taiwan about US President Donald Trump's willingness to protect the island. He said last month that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would be "catastrophic." On Sunday, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that the US would ensure "robust, ready and credible deterrence" across the Taiwan Strait.