Nournews: China’s recent exercises convey, above all, a clear and unambiguous message: territorial integrity is an absolute, non-negotiable red line for Beijing. The Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese military, by practicing scenarios of naval invasion, air defense, anti-submarine operations, and simulating a complete blockade of Taiwan, demonstrated that separatist threats will be addressed not only diplomatically but also militarily. China’s Ministry of Defense explicitly described the exercises as a “serious warning to separatist forces,” a phrase rooted in Beijing’s historical experience of the Soviet collapse and its ongoing efforts to manage regions such as Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Taiwan. The difference today is that China, alongside its economic and diplomatic advantages, has achieved indigenous military maturity and is ready to activate this component in its deterrence calculations.

Linking Military Power with Global Influence
In recent years, China has transformed from a purely economic power into a multidimensional actor in the international system. Recent Pentagon warnings about China’s naval advancements and U.S. lag in capabilities inadvertently confirm this reality. The Taiwan exercises should be understood within this context: Beijing seeks to align its military power with its political and economic components and to showcase its global influence to both friends and rivals. This strategy is reinforced by China’s active participation in mechanisms such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, where the idea of a multilateral new order is becoming a practical alternative to Western hegemony. The recent exercises are not a one-off action but part of the process of consolidating this strategic position.

Direct Warning to the U.S. and Regional Allies
Regionally, the message of China’s exercises is directly aimed at the U.S. and its network of allies in East Asia. While Washington speaks of “managed competition” in official documents, in practice it continues a policy of containment and intervention—from allocating $11 billion in military aid to Taipei within the $901 billion U.S. defense budget to encouraging Japan and South Korea to strengthen their military roles within the U.S.-led strategy. Japan’s approval of a massive defense budget, construction of missile islands near Taiwan, joint exercises with the U.S., and Seoul’s contradictory statements on “stability” in the Taiwan Strait are all signs of this escalating and dangerous game. In this context, China is signaling to regional countries that any alignment with projects against its territorial integrity will come at a cost.

Exposing Western Contradictions in the International Order
Europe’s reaction to China’s exercises has once again revealed the West’s deep contradictions. Expressions of concern from the EU, France, and Germany over “China’s provocations” come while the same actors have spent hundreds of billions of euros on the war in Ukraine under the claim of defending territorial integrity and have rejected any peace initiatives. Silence in the face of U.S. threats to Venezuela, open support for Israeli aggression and alleged genocide in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria, and backing of military strikes on Iran show that the principle of territorial integrity is selective and instrumental for the West. This behavioral inconsistency has eroded Western moral legitimacy and strengthened the appeal of a multilateral new order—an order that China is one of the main architects of.