Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun 
Screenshot from a video released by China on April 2 showing a PLA live fire exercise (via Kyodo News, from footage shown on China Central Television)
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China is once again recklessly playing with fire. This time, it took the form of a large-scale Chinese military exercise conducted over two consecutive days simulating military operations, including a blockade of the Taiwan Strait.
According to Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense, the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong was deployed in waters east of Taiwan. Dozens of warships, China Coast Guard, and other vessels were positioned to surround Taiwan. Meanwhile, in the skies above, numerous Chinese military aircraft crossed the median, which has long served as a de facto ceasefire line in the Taiwan Strait.
Such conduct that disrupts peace and stability in Northeast Asia cannot be tolerated.
Grand PLA Exercises
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) dubbed the massive exercise "Straits Thunder-2025A" (Haixia Leiting-2025A), which means "fierce thunder and fury." The exercise was meant to test the capabilities necessary to blockade the Taiwan Strait.
It included the mock inspection and seizure of ships and precision attacks on port facilities. An official propaganda video was also released. This was all designed to exert psychological pressure on Taiwan.
The PLA also conducted exercises to encircle Taiwan in the fall of 2024. This was its first announced exercise since the inauguration of the second Trump administration. It appears the operation was intended to check the Lai Ching-te administration in Taiwan, which has labeled China an "enemy," and to gauge how the Trump administration would respond.
On March 30, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth met with Defense Minister Gen Nakatani. He specifically announced the intent of the US to upgrade the deterrent strength of the Japan-US alliance to "prevent Chinese aggression."
Two days later, the Chinese military exercise began. Appropriately, the US State Department then issued a statement condemning the PLA exercise. It read in part, "Once again, China's aggressive military activities and rhetoric toward Taiwan only serve to exacerbate tensions and put the region's security and the world's prosperity at risk."
Xi Jinping's Invasion Plan
Chinese President Xi Jinping has instructed the PLA to complete preparations for an invasion of Taiwan by 2027. A naval blockade of Taiwan would be essential to allow the PLA units to land and to prevent US military intervention.
According to analysis by a leading US think tank, the Xi regime is also pursuing a scenario in which it could use coercion to annex Taiwan without resorting to a military invasion. Part of this would aim to cause a rift between Taiwan and the US. A naval blockade forms an important part of that strategy as well.
The leadership in China wants to instill fear and distrust among the people of Taiwan. Doing so, Beijing thinks, would force the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to relinquish power after a defeat in the 2028 presidential election. In other words, it believes its coercion process will prove effective.
Nevertheless, the blockade simulation exercises represent a military threat that could directly morph into an actual invasion. Therefore, we must exercise the utmost vigilance.
China's foreign ministry expressed "strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition" to the Japanese government for conveying its concerns about the military exercise. That will not intimidate us, however.
We urge the Ishiba administration to stand up firmly to China, which is undermining peace in the region.
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Author: Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun
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