China’s Massive Maritime Exercise Fails To Intimidate Taiwanese Public
In the final days of 2025, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) staged some of its largest-ever maritime drills near Taiwan. Dubbed “Justice Mission 2025” and accompanied by Chinese propaganda denouncing “Taiwan Independence separatists” and “external forces”, the drills were intended to simulate a blockade of Taiwan. It was latest in a series of attempts by the Chinese Communist Party to coerce and pressure the Taiwanese people and their democratically elected government. But what did these drills actually accomplish? Based on the nonchalant response of the Taiwan public, the answer appears to be: not much. In this episode, we discuss the latest PLA drills, China’s pressure campaign against Taiwan, and the effect (or lack of) that it is having on Taiwan’s government and society. Host: Ethan Liu Producer: Tina Hsu Our guests: Shen Ming-shih - Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR) Research Fellow Raymond Sung - Taiwan National Security Institute Board Member
