China issues warning to Trump as it launches huge war games around Taiwan including rehearsal for blockading the island's ports
Beijing's foreign ministry struck a defiant tone as the drills got underway, declaring: 'Any act of provocation on the Taiwan issue will surely be met with a firm counterattack from the Chinese side'.
China has fired a chilling warning to the US as it unleashed massive live-fire war games around Taiwan, deploying troops and warships in exercises that include rehearsals for sealing off the island's vital ports.
Beijing's foreign ministry struck a defiant tone as the drills got underway, declaring: 'Any act of provocation on the Taiwan issue will surely be met with a firm counterattack from the Chinese side'.
Asked whether recent US arms sales had triggered the manoeuvres, officials doubled down, insisting: 'China's defence of national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity is unswerving'.
The exercises - branded Justice Mission 2025 - began on Monday as Taiwan scrambled its own forces and showcased US-made military hardware in a show of readiness to repel any attack.
China's Eastern Theatre Command said it had concentrated forces to the north and southwest of the Taiwan Strait, carrying out live firing and simulated strikes against land and maritime targets.
The drills are set to continue on Tuesday and will include exercises aimed at blockading Taiwan's main ports and encircling the island.
A senior Taiwan security official told Reuters that dozens of Chinese military vessels and aircraft were operating around the island, with some 'deliberately closing in' on Taiwan's contiguous zone - just 24 nautical miles from its coast.
The latest show of force marks China's sixth major round of war games since 2022, following a visit by then US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to the democratically governed island.
A Taiwanese air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet takes off at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu on December 29, 2025
President Xi Jinping told US President Donald Trump in November that Taiwan's 'return to China' after World War II was central to Beijing's vision of global order
It also comes amid a sharp escalation in rhetoric after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could prompt a military response from Tokyo.
The drills began just 11 days after Washington announced a record $11.1billion arms package for Taiwan, drawing protests from China's defence ministry and warnings that the military would 'take forceful measures' in response.
Analysts say Beijing is increasingly blurring the line between routine military exercises and preparations for a real assault - a strategy designed to leave the US and its allies with minimal warning.
'This (the drills) serves as a serious warning to 'Taiwan Independence' separatist forces and external interference forces,' said Shi Yi, a spokesperson for the Eastern Theatre Command.