Section

Cross-Strait

PLA activity, grey-zone pressure and political-military developments across the Taiwan Strait.

A US Navy sailor in a cap and dark jacket looks through binoculars on a destroyer deck, with the ship's mast behind him and a choppy grey sea to the side

Prague wargame of a Chinese blockade of Taiwan ends with deterrence failing and a US warship sunk

About 30 experts and former officials at a European Values Center exercise concluded that earlier economic pressure and clearer military deterrence might have stopped the crisis.

TaiwanDefence · 6h ago · 3 min read

A small grey Taiwan coast guard patrol boat moored beside a larger white coast guard ship marked R.O.C. Coast Guard in a harbour

Cross-Strait

Chinese coast guard ship tells a Taiwanese cutter off Orchid Island that the Republic of China does not exist

Taiwan's coast guard says China Coast Guard ship 2503 broadcast sovereignty claims 40 nautical miles off Lanyu and told passing ships to obey Chinese law.

TaiwanDefence · 17h ago · 3 min read

A white China Coast Guard cutter marked 3105, with a red and blue stripe near the bow, sailing on open blue sea

Cross-Strait

US research monitor counts 69 Chinese coast guard incursions around Taiwan this year, 43 at Kinmen

A George Mason University database updated on 11 November shows Kinmen nearing its 2025 total, as November incursions come several times a week.

TaiwanDefence · 23h ago · 3 min read

A man in an Align team T-shirt operates a remote-controlled model helicopter on a parade ground in front of army tanks and soldiers

Cross-Strait

Taiwan charges drone maker Align's founder with hiding Chinese chips in military drones

Prosecutors say the T-REX helicopter firm's founder and his wife supplied four military drone orders with Chinese parts and scrubbed their markings to pass inspection.

TaiwanDefence · 1d ago · 3 min read

The white and blue hull of a newly launched Taiwanese ocean survey ship, partly draped in red cloth, at a shipyard

Cross-Strait

Taiwan opens an ocean survey centre, saying 74 Chinese ships have mapped the seas around it

President Lai unveiled a centre that will run Taiwan's survey ships and a ship model lab tied to its submarine programme, as officials cited Chinese seabed surveys.

TaiwanDefence · 1d ago · 3 min read

A dark-hulled Chinese vessel with a white superstructure, radar domes and a tall mast sailing on blue sea, with a white coast guard ship behind it

Cross-Strait

Taiwan report says PLA units face a talent gap as China's coast guard pushes east of Taiwan

Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council says constant reform has thinned PLA grassroots talent, while Chinese coast guard and militia boats spread into waters east of the island.

TaiwanDefence · 1d ago · 3 min read

A large black submarine with a raised missile deck moored beside a pier, with a second submarine and blue sheds behind it

Cross-Strait

Taiwan says China quietly test-fired a submarine-launched ICBM during its unannounced drills

Taiwanese security officials say the missile was fired from waters off eastern China in early November as part of a PLA exercise that Beijing never named.

TaiwanDefence · 1d ago · 2 min read

A white China Coast Guard cutter and a grey Chinese navy frigate sailing on open sea under a cloudy sky

Cross-Strait

Japanese defence think tank says China sees the South China Sea as a route to Taiwan

Japan's National Institute for Defense Studies says Beijing wants control of the South China Sea to keep US forces out of any war over Taiwan.

TaiwanDefence · 1d ago · 3 min read

A white Taiwan coast guard patrol boat marked PP-3591 moored at a concrete quay with green hills behind

Cross-Strait

Taiwan's coast guard puts a 45-knot patrol boat into service on the Matsu front line

The aluminium-hulled PP-35103 joins the Matsu unit, which says its crews face cross-border vessel intrusions, illegal activity at sea and frequent rescue calls.

TaiwanDefence · 2d ago · 2 min read

Grey Chinese J-16 twin-engine fighter jet in flight against a blue sky

Cross-Strait

China sends 29 military aircraft towards Taiwan, 22 of them across the Strait's median line

Taiwan's defence ministry said 22 of the fighters, tankers, early-warning planes and drones crossed the Strait's median line as warships joined in.

TaiwanDefence · 2d ago · 2 min read

A wide paved plaza leading to a row of tall white columned gate structures under a blue sky, with modern campus buildings behind

Cross-Strait

PLA-linked Chinese university bought Nvidia H200 chips despite US blacklist, records show

Northwestern Polytechnical University, a missile and aircraft research school on the US Entity List since 2001, bought two H200 chips last month through a domestic supplier.

TaiwanDefence · 3d ago · 3 min read

Volunteers in a paved square practise first aid on people lying under foil blankets during a civil defence drill

Cross-Strait

Two-thirds of Taiwanese say they would defend the island if attacked, poll finds

A survey released on 11 November puts willingness to defend Taiwan at 66.4%, up from 64% a year earlier, while backing for a US military alliance edged up to 58.8%.

TaiwanDefence · 3d ago · 3 min read

A grey Taipei District Court van with a red roof light parked at a kerb, with traffic and a tall tower behind

Cross-Strait

Taipei court acquits retired officer over cash pipeline that funded a Chinese spy ring

A Taipei court cleared a retired army lieutenant colonel of laundering NT$11.1 million sent to fund a PLA-linked spy ring, but convicted the money mover.

TaiwanDefence · 3d ago · 2 min read

A large modern office building with a glass and stone facade, the Chinese Academy of Sciences headquarters in Beijing

Cross-Strait

PLA cyber scientist Guo Shize vanishes from China's academy roster, the latest defence expert to go

The Strategic Support Force veteran's page has been pulled with no explanation, as Hong Kong media count about 11 academicians dropped in a year, many from the arms industry.

TaiwanDefence · 3d ago · 3 min read

A red Chinese flag with yellow stars flies in front of a large pale stone building with rows of blue windows

Cross-Strait

China's top general wants military and civilian watchdogs to hunt graft in PLA weapons programmes

Zhang Shengmin, one of only two men left on the Central Military Commission, also told the PLA to obey Xi Jinping in the first plenum lecture.

TaiwanDefence · 4d ago · 2 min read

Rows of pink chairs and dark wooden desks face a podium beneath the Republic of China flag and a portrait of Sun Yat-sen in Taiwan's legislative chamber

Cross-Strait

Taiwan's defence ministry warns bills to raise military pensions could hurt troop retention

Ahead of a committee review of 11 opposition bills, the ministry says tying retirement pay to serving pay could discourage long military careers.

TaiwanDefence · 4d ago · 3 min read

White Philippine Coast Guard patrol ship with a blue and red hull stripe and the number 9701 on calm grey water

Cross-Strait

Taiwan defence think tank says a Chinese survey ship faked its position near the Bashi Channel

INDSR says the Jia Hai Ke 7, escorted by a Chinese coast guard ship, may have charted submarine routes and the location of cables and sensors.

TaiwanDefence · 5d ago · 3 min read

Grey tailless flying-wing drone model with open weapon bay doors on display inside an exhibition hall

Cross-Strait

China shows the GJ-11 stealth drone's internal weapon bay in new state TV footage

CCTV aired close-up video of the GJ-11, now codenamed Xuanlong, ahead of the PLA Air Force anniversary, giving a first view of its belly weapon bay.

TaiwanDefence · 5d ago · 3 min read

Wide view of a long stone government building with tall columns under a clear sky

Cross-Strait

Four Chinese generals and admirals quit the national legislature as the military delegation keeps shrinking

Zhang Gong, Guo Jianjun, Wu Yuhong and Meng Qingbin resigned as NPC deputies with no reason given, taking military departures this term to 50.

TaiwanDefence · 5d ago · 3 min read

A harbour quay lined with stacked shipping containers and a cargo ship across calm blue water, with a tall white monument on the skyline

Cross-Strait

Chinese coast guard flotilla makes a sixth Kinmen incursion in two weeks despite heavy seas

Four China Coast Guard ships, the same hulls seen on 4 and 6 November, spent two hours in Kinmen's restricted waters as Taiwan called the move irrational.

TaiwanDefence · 5d ago · 3 min read

Wide view of the Legislative Yuan chamber benches and podium in Taipei

Cross-Strait

Prosecutors say May Chin followed Beijing on defence votes as lawmakers warn of secrets risk

Taiwan's High Prosecutors Office sought 14 years for the independent legislator, alleging CCP-directed work against arms buys; DPP lawmakers warn she still sits on committees with defence access.

TaiwanDefence · 7 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

Portrait of Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo

Cross-Strait

Koo says US arms sales to Taiwan stay on track after Democrats win Congress

Taiwan's defence minister answered midterm questions on 5 November by stressing bipartisan congressional support and a ministry plan to keep Foreign Military Sales timing intact.

TaiwanDefence · 7 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning moored in harbour with city skyline behind

Cross-Strait

ISW says China's West Pacific surge looks like an unannounced isolation drill

A 6 November Institute for the Study of War update argues multi-theater PLAN and coast guard deployments around Taiwan exceed Justice Mission 2025 and may be meant to look routine.

TaiwanDefence · 7 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

Front view of Taiwan Presidential Office Building in Taipei under a blue sky

Cross-Strait

Lin Feifan tells Berlin that Taiwan will not wait for outside rescue

NSC deputy Lin Fei-fan tells Berlin that Taiwan will defend itself rather than wait for rescue, citing PLA pressure, cable cuts and 2.8 million daily cyberattacks.

TaiwanDefence · 6 Nov 2026 · 3 min read

Taiwan coast guard patrol ship CG 125 Lienchiang moored alongside a pier in Keelung harbour

Cross-Strait

Taiwan coast guard drives four Chinese ships from Kinmen waters in rough seas

On 6 November 2026, Coast Guard boats one-to-one shadowed China Coast Guard hulls 14604, 14530, 14608 and 14531 until they left Kinmen restricted waters at 11:13 a.m.

TaiwanDefence · 6 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

Official portrait of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te

Cross-Strait

Lai ties Strait peace to strength as liberals back Taiwan maritime cooperation

The president said Taiwan is investing in asymmetric forces and societal resilience, while Liberal International urged Indo-Pacific states to share maritime monitoring with Taiwan.

TaiwanDefence · 6 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

White Taiwanese coast guard patrol ships tied up at a pier under a partly cloudy sky

Cross-Strait

Taiwan says its coast guard drove away Chinese vessels 618 times this year as grey-zone pressure rises

Ocean Affairs minister Guan Bi-ling told the Cabinet that Chinese coast guard ships entered Dongsha and Kinmen waters 52 times, while Taipei funds a larger sea-air coast guard.

TaiwanDefence · 5 Nov 2026 · 2 min read

A Patriot missile launcher with four canisters mounted on a large military truck parked on an air base apron

Cross-Strait

Taiwan's defence minister says US backing for arms sales will hold after Democrats win Congress

Wellington Koo says support in Congress crosses party lines as Taipei waits on a US$14 billion package, including Patriot missiles, that Trump has held back.

TaiwanDefence · 5 Nov 2026 · 3 min read

Aerial view of the five-sided Pentagon building and its car parks outside Washington

Cross-Strait

US and Chinese military officials hold crisis communication talks in Washington

The Pentagon's China and Taiwan policy chief met a PLA envoy for annual talks on lowering risks, but the readout named no hotline or signed memorandum.

TaiwanDefence · 5 Nov 2026 · 3 min read

A large grey Chinese tanker aircraft trails a refuelling hose toward a J-16 fighter jet flying behind it over the sea

Cross-Strait

Chinese jets cross the Taiwan Strait median line in Beijing's second combat readiness patrol in a week

Taiwan's defence ministry tracked 14 Chinese aircraft sorties, 12 of them across the median line, as four Chinese coast guard ships entered Kinmen's restricted waters.