Overview
- China’s Eastern Theater Command said the two-day “Justice Mission 2025” exercises were completed, describing successful simulations of port blockades and maritime strikes.
- Taiwan reported some Chinese live-fire rounds fell closer than in past drills, including rockets within its 24-nautical-mile zone, and condemned the manoeuvres as highly provocative.
- Chinese navy and coastguard vessels began withdrawing, while Taiwan kept coastguard and military deployments at sea, saying it could not let its guard down.
- Xi Jinping declared in his New Year message that reunification is unstoppable, reinforcing Beijing’s sovereignty claims following the drills.
- Japan, Australia and the Philippines voiced concern that the exercises raised tensions, while China dismissed the criticism as irresponsible and Taiwan tracked a spike in disinformation linked to the drills.