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China and Taiwan Trade Military Exercises
TaiwanPlus News
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3/19/2025
Taiwan’s military is on high alert after Chinese forces passed close to the country. These maneuvers come just after new drills were announced by Taipei, adding unwelcome realism to exercises meant to test the country’s defenses.
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00:00
Taiwan's navy stares down a Chinese destroyer operating around Taiwan.
00:06
It was one of nine Chinese ships patrolling the region's waters, just hours after Taiwan
00:11
started military drills to test its capabilities on Monday.
00:15
China's navy regularly operates in these waters, but Taiwan's defense minister says that this
00:20
time was different.
00:22
The military drills have been held once a week.
00:29
Yesterday was a special day because it was held in the morning.
00:34
But the Chinese ships didn't leave the waters.
00:38
In the afternoon, the Chinese air force entered the waters.
00:42
Taiwan's defense ministry says a total of 59 Chinese military aircraft and drones were
00:47
spotted operating around the country between Monday and Tuesday.
00:50
43 of the aircraft flew closer and breached the country's air defense identification zone,
00:55
or ADIZ.
00:56
Taiwan's military deployed its own aircraft in response and released rare images of Chinese
01:02
drones around the country.
01:03
The spike in military activity on both sides is prompting debate between Taiwan's two biggest
01:08
political parties, as tensions with China continue to boil.
01:18
March and April is the peak of China's military exercises.
01:22
It's like they like to do these things in August and September.
01:25
China will always find a reason to do military exercises.
01:30
Taiwan has been trying to boost its defensive capabilities and make sure that its armed
01:34
forces are ready to react if one of these incursions turns into an actual attack.
01:39
But with more and more Chinese ships and aircraft spotted around the country, some analysts
01:44
say that Taiwan may need to reconsider how it's using its limited resources when reacting
01:49
to these threats.
01:50
Now, it's not surprising to see aircraft on all sides of the island every single day.
01:54
I mean, again, that used to be a huge deal.
01:56
They've succeeded in altering the status quo.
01:59
The median line has been erased.
02:00
They have a near permanent naval presence around the island.
02:02
I do think that at some point, Taiwan does have to choose because of the budgetary limitations.
02:07
Okay, are we going to spend our spare part budget on maintaining F-16s that are flying
02:12
to respond to ADA's incursions, or are we going to spend them for practical training
02:15
in Hong Kong?
02:16
Taiwan's largest annual military drills, the Hong Kong exercises, are less than four months
02:20
away.
02:21
And with military hardware already deployed across the country, Taiwan is sticking to
02:25
its plan and focusing on making sure its soldiers stay alert.
02:29
Taiwan's rapid response exercises are meant to last until Friday and test how quickly
02:34
the country can mobilize its military.
02:36
But with China conducting its own exercises, these drills have become that much more urgent.
02:41
Yi Sun-Chen and Jaime O'Connor in Taipei for Taiwan Plus.
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