China launched military exercises near Taiwan on Monday, describing them as a direct response to President Lai Ching-te’s continued advocacy for the island’s sovereignty. Beijing issued a sharp warning, condemning what it calls “separatist actions,” while Taiwan fired back, labeling China a regional troublemaker.

China has consistently refused to rule out using force to assert control over Taiwan and has escalated both military and political pressure on the self-governed island in recent years. Taiwan’s defense ministry reported that China carried out two rounds of “joint combat readiness patrols” during the day, deploying 54 warplanes—including J-10 fighter jets and drones—into airspace around the island. The aircraft were observed to the north, west, southwest, and east of Taiwan, prompting Taipei to mobilize its own naval and aerial forces in response.

Notably, 42 of the Chinese planes crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary long observed as a buffer between the two sides, according to Taiwan’s defense ministry.

"If the Lai administration dares to provoke and play with fire, it will only hasten its own downfall," warned a spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office in a statement.

Taiwan regularly reports such incursions, though Beijing rarely provides public commentary on them. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council accused China of persistently threatening the island, escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait, and undermining regional stability. It called on allied nations to counter Beijing’s growing military aggression, branding the Chinese Communist Party as a “troublemaker.”

Taiwanese security officials have noted that China appears to be normalizing these military maneuvers, now conducting drills around the island roughly every 7 to 10 days.

President Lai, who last week accused China of intensifying its influence operations and infiltration efforts against Taiwan, has pledged to counter Beijing’s attempts to “absorb” the island. While Lai has repeatedly expressed willingness to engage in dialogue with China, Beijing has consistently dismissed such offers, insisting that Taiwan’s fate is a matter of national reunification—an assertion firmly rejected by Taipei, which maintains that only its people have the right to determine their own future.