Taiwan has strongly condemned China’s plan to conduct a naval exercise with Indonesia in waters east of Taiwan, describing the proposed drills as a “military provocation” that infringes on Taiwan’s sovereignty and poses a threat to regional peace and stability, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA).
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), the government agency responsible for China-related policy, issued a statement on Tuesday evening urging Beijing to immediately halt what it described as a dangerous move aimed at challenging the existing status quo in the Taiwan Strait and surrounding waters.
The reaction followed an announcement by China’s Ministry of National Defence earlier Tuesday that a Chinese Navy vessel and an Indonesian Navy frigate would conduct a “navigation exercise” in waters east of Taiwan in mid-August.
According to the Chinese announcement cited by CNA, the exercise will include communications training and replenishment-at-sea drills. Beijing said the activities were intended to improve the two navies’ ability to conduct joint operations, strengthen practical cooperation and “jointly safeguard regional peace and stability.”
However, Taiwan strongly objected to the planned exercise and accused Beijing of using military cooperation with other countries to expand its presence in waters around the island.
The MAC said China had recently intensified what it described as “gray-zone harassment” against Taiwan. Such activities, according to the council, have included the deployment of Chinese government vessels for what Beijing describes as routine law-enforcement patrols, as well as the presence of research vessels in Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The council said the planned naval exercise represented another escalation, arguing that Beijing was attempting to establish a perception that China has jurisdiction over waters east of Taiwan.
The MAC characterised the development as “exercises in name, expansion in reality”, alleging that China was seeking to gradually expand its military and maritime activities under the cover of routine cooperation with other countries.
Taiwan accused Beijing of “blatantly infringing” upon its sovereignty and maritime rights and warned that such activities could undermine peace and stability in the wider region.
Taiwan’s government said it would continue to closely monitor developments and take necessary and appropriate measures to protect its sovereignty and safeguard peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. The council, however, did not provide details of what specific measures Taiwan might take.
China’s Ministry of National Defence announced the planned exercise at 5:08 p.m. Tuesday. Its statement did not disclose the precise location or duration of the drills, nor did it specify how close the participating naval vessels would operate to Taiwan.
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The planned exercise also comes against the backdrop of expanding China-Indonesia defence engagement. Beijing has increasingly sought military and strategic cooperation with countries across the Indo-Pacific, while Taiwan has repeatedly raised concerns over Chinese military activities in and around waters surrounding the island.
Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China, and Indonesia do not maintain formal diplomatic relations. Nevertheless, the two sides maintain representative offices in each other’s capitals and have substantial economic, trade and people-to-people ties.
Taiwanese government statistics cited by CNA showed that bilateral trade between Taiwan and Indonesia reached USD 11.27 billion in 2025. Indonesia is also an important source of migrant labour for Taiwan, with more than 335,000 Indonesian migrant workers residing in Taiwan as of the end of June 2026.
The proposed naval exercise is therefore likely to receive close attention in Taipei as Taiwan seeks to balance its economic engagement with regional partners against growing concerns over China’s expanding military presence and maritime activities around the island.
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