China said Wednesday that it has completed two days of military drills around Taiwan meant to serve as a warning to the government of leader Lai Ching-te, involving the deployment of the Shandong aircraft carrier fleet and long-range live-fire exercises.
The Eastern Theater Command, which covers the Taiwan Strait, said in a statement that it has "completed all designated tasks of the joint exercises" that tested the troops' integrated joint operations capabilities.
The command added its troops will "remain on high alert" and will "continue to strengthen combat readiness with intensive training, resolutely thwarting any separatist activities seeking 'Taiwan independence.'"
The exercises, code-named "Strait Thunder-2025A," employed the Shandong aircraft carrier group in coordination with naval and air units in waters east of Taiwan and involved simulated strikes on ground and maritime targets.
Screenshot from footage released April 2, 2025, on CCTV's online channel shows the Chinese military conducting a long-range live-fire drill. (Kyodo)
The command also said its ground force conducted live-fire shooting drills in the East China Sea involving "precision strikes on such simulated targets as key ports and energy facilities," and they achieved the expected results.
Beijing launched the large-scale drills near Taiwan on Tuesday, saying they serve as a "stern warning and forceful deterrence" against those seeking the island's independence.
The mainland has been angered by Lai's move to prevent Beijing's infiltration and espionage activities in the self-ruled territory, categorizing China as a "foreign hostile force" last month.
Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it had detected 36 mainland Chinese military aircraft, 21 navy vessels and 10 coast guard ships operating near the island Wednesday.
Of the detected aircraft, 20 had entered Taiwan's "response" zone, while eight of the vessels were part of a naval formation led by the Shandong aircraft carrier, which was detected in the Western Pacific about 350 kilometers east of Taiwan's southern tip, it added.
The ministry said it did not detect Chinese live-fire drills in areas around Taiwan, adding they took place outside of its response zone.
The U.S. State Department criticized the Chinese military drills in a statement Tuesday, saying they "only serve to exacerbate tensions and put the region's security and the world's prosperity at risk."
"In the face of China's intimidation tactics and destabilizing behavior, the United States' enduring commitment to our allies and partners, including Taiwan, continues," the department said, adding Washington "opposes unilateral changes to the status quo, including through force or coercion."
In addition to the United States, Japan and the European Union have also expressed concern over China's military drills.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun rejected their claims, saying at a press conference in Beijing that the Taiwan issue is "purely China's internal affairs" and "no external forces have the right to point fingers at this."
"We will never ever allow anyone, any force, to separate Taiwan from China in any form. We will take all measures necessary to firmly safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity," Guo said.
On Tuesday, the Chinese military released a cartoon depicting Lai as a "parasite" that would "poison, hollow out, and ultimately destroy" Taiwan in a rhetorical attack against him.
Some Taiwanese citizens who visited Xiamen on the southeastern Chinese coast, just across the Taiwan Strait, aired concern over the military drills.
"There are many Taiwanese who are not afraid of (Chinese) exercises, but the issue will eventually affect us. (President) Xi Jinping will surely aim for unification," said a 70-year-old Taiwanese man, who often visits Xiamen from Taipei.
Communist-led China views Taiwan as a renegade province to be brought into its fold, by force if necessary. The democratic island and the mainland have been governed separately since they split in 1949 after a civil war.
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