Defense & Security

Japanese Ship Heads for Taiwan to Observe Chinese Exercises

Reuters
A giant screen shows a news report on China’s “Justice Mission 2025” military drills around Taiwan, in Beijing, China December 30, 2025.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

11:49 JST, December 31, 2025

While there have been no direct military actions against Japan, the Japanese government anticipates the Chinese military may increase its activities.

The Japanese Defense Ministry on Tuesday dispatched a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer toward Taiwan to gather intelligence and conduct surveillance.

“Nothing new has been observed in the exercises,” a Japanese ministry official said. “China may have wanted to demonstrate that it could use force at any time by showing force toward Taiwan from various angles.”

During its August 2022 military drills, China fired ballistic missiles into Japan’s exclusive economic zone, but no missiles have flown near Japanese waters during the latest drills. A senior Japanese ministry official said China “may have judged that it is not wise to provoke Japan and the United States unnecessarily.”

The Chinese military has repeatedly engaged in provocative actions against Japan since a remark in November by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about a Taiwan contingency. Japan will coordinate with its allies and like-minded nations to respond calmly and keep the situation from escalating.