China has launched live-fire military drills around Taiwan, describing them as a warning to “Taiwan independence” forces and foreign interference.

The People’s Liberation Army deployed naval, air, missile, and coast guard forces to encircle the island in an exercise called Justice Mission 2025.

Taiwan condemned the drills as an escalation that threatens regional stability and said it had responded with its own combat-readiness measures.

Analysts say the exercises appear larger and closer to Taiwan than usual and explicitly test China’s ability to block international involvement, The Guardian has reported.

The drills come amid heightened tensions involving U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, Japanese warnings of possible involvement, and Beijing’s ongoing push for reunification.