China deployed more than 100 naval and coast guard vessels across the western Pacific and around Taiwan in an unannounced military exercise earlier this month, in what Taiwanese officials described as a campaign of “silent intimidation” aimed at pressuring Taipei and other governments ahead of major international meetings.
The deployment involved coordinated operations by China’s eastern, northern and southern theatre commands, suggesting preparations for a potential blockade of Taiwan and wider military operations across the western Pacific, a senior Taiwanese security official told Reuters on condition of anonymity, according to Reuters.
The exercises included simulated attacks on foreign military forces and cities, including targets in Taiwan, the official said.
The deployment was larger than China’s last formally named military exercises targeting Taiwan, known as Justice Mission 2025, and was among the country’s largest naval deployments to date, the official added.
During the exercises, a Chinese submarine also launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Yellow Sea towards the Chinese mainland, according to the Taiwanese official.
“It is a silent exercise — and in effect, silent intimidation,” the official told Reuters, describing the operation as a means of exerting military pressure without triggering a major diplomatic response.
China’s Defence Ministry did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Taiwanese Defence Minister Wellington Koo said this week that China was conducting “area denial” drills in the western Pacific involving an aircraft carrier and other naval formations.
Beijing has described the carrier’s activities as routine exercises, saying they are not directed at any particular country. However, China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control.
The scale of the deployment had declined by Friday, with around 70 Chinese vessels operating within the first island chain, according to two Taiwanese security officials.
Taiwan’s National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu said on Thursday that naval formations from China’s northern, eastern and southern theatre commands, together with the Liaoning aircraft carrier strike group, remained active in waters east of the Philippines.
Chinese air force activity near Taiwan also remained high, he added.
The absence of a formal announcement appeared deliberate, allowing Beijing to exert military pressure while avoiding the diplomatic backlash that could follow publicly declared exercises, a foreign intelligence source told Reuters.
The developments come ahead of next week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit in Shenzhen, where US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet for the third time this year.
Taiwan is also participating in the summit.
On Thursday, Xi reiterated Beijing’s position on Taiwan, calling for peaceful “reunification” while saying the process was a historical imperative.
China considers Taiwan part of its territory, although the island has been governed separately for decades.
Beijing’s growing military pressure has heightened concerns in Taipei and Western capitals about the risk of conflict across the Taiwan Strait.
China’s state-backed Global Times warned on Friday that Taiwan’s ruling party would face a “harsh reckoning” if it continued pursuing independence through external support or military means.
