Key facts
- Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo said China conducted area denial drills in the Western Pacific with the Liaoning carrier group.
- Koo said the drills also involved other naval training formations and that Taiwan was keeping a close watch.
- Taiwan National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu posted details of more than 100 Chinese naval and Coast Guard ships.
- Taiwan's defence ministry reported a large rise in Chinese air force aircraft around Taiwan, though China has not declared drills.
- China's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Koo's remarks.
Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo said on November 10, 2026 that China had carried out "area denial" drills in the Western Pacific involving the Liaoning carrier group and other naval training formations, Reuters reported from Taipei.
Koo spoke to reporters at parliament. He said the military was keeping a close watch on Chinese activity and that Taiwan would use joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance means and exchange intelligence with allies to monitor the drills and respond appropriately. He also said Taiwan believes "this kind of military deterrence is intended to undermine peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region."
Anti-access/area denial, or A2AD, refers to keeping an outside force from intervening in a conflict. In the Taiwan context it means stopping US or other allied forces from coming to Taipei's aid should Beijing attack.
China's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It said in October 2026 that the Liaoning carrier's training in the western Pacific was an annual routine to test long-range, open-ocean combat capabilities and was not directed at any particular country.
The remarks followed a reported rise in Chinese activity. Taiwan National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu posted on his X account details of the deployments of more than 100 Chinese naval and Coast Guard ships operating off Taiwan, in the South China Sea and into the Pacific. Taiwan's defence ministry also reported a large rise in the number of Chinese air force aircraft around Taiwan, though China has not formally declared any drills.
China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and regularly sends warplanes and warships into the skies and waters around the island. It has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, though it says it would prefer "peaceful reunification". Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the Taiwanese people can decide their future.