China staged large unannounced naval drills across the western Pacific and around Taiwan in early November, massing more than 100 naval and coastguard vessels at the peak—one of its largest such deployments—ahead of Donald Trump’s arrival in China for the APEC economic summit.
According to a senior Taiwanese security official speaking anonymously, Chinese forces conducted simulated attacks on foreign militaries and cities, including Taiwan’s. During the exercises, a Chinese submarine launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Yellow Sea toward the Chinese mainland.
The drills were larger than China’s last formally named exercise around Taiwan (“Justice Mission 2025”) and involved forces from multiple commands.
By mid-November, the number of active vessels had fallen to around 70 within the first island chain. Taiwanese officials described the activity as “silent intimidation” timed before major international meetings. Beijing has not publicly announced or named the drills and has described related carrier movements as routine.
The activity comes as China, which claims Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out the use of force, continues stepped-up military pressure. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet at the APEC summit hosted by China in Shenzhen.