China is increasingly relying on “hybrid warfare” and other gray zone tactics to increase pressure on Taiwan, moving away from direct military confrontation and instead using coast guard deployments, scientific research vessels and legal claims to advance its goals, a senior Taiwanese security official said.According to Taiwanese news agency ANI, Ho Cheng-hui, deputy secretary-general of Taiwan’s Institute for National Security Studies, said Beijing is paying more attention to operations that do not reach the threshold of war, combining sovereignty claims, maritime activities and propaganda activities to influence public opinion and exert diplomatic pressure on Taiwan and regional neighbors.Referring to the changing security environment, Mr He said that as the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran appear to be easing, China may view the prospects of achieving its goals through outright military force as becoming less favorable.As a result, it has increasingly turned to other methods to challenge Taiwan and reshape regional dynamics.
Focus on maritime stress and legal claims
Stanley Ho believes Beijing is exploiting loopholes in international law and using legal means to justify its increasingly assertive behavior in disputed waters.He pointed to Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone, the midline of the Taiwan Strait and the waters around Kinmen and Matsu as potential flashpoints for China’s future activities.He said China’s coast guard has become a key tool in this strategy, often operating near disputed maritime borders, creating uncertainty and challenging existing norms.Mr. Ho said the actions were not just about strengthening Beijing’s territorial claims but also about shaping international perceptions and complicating responses from Taiwan and its partners.
Urge Taiwan to adopt “absolute transparency”
Stanley Ho called on Taiwan to take a more proactive approach to countering China’s activities and pointed to the Philippines’ “absolute transparency” policy as a successful example.By publicly documenting and exposing every Chinese maritime intrusion, Manila has been able to challenge Beijing’s narrative and counter disinformation campaigns.Ho suggested Taiwan could take similar measures, including live broadcasting coast guard patrols around its outlying islands, to quickly refute false claims.He also advocated strengthening cooperation between Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines through intelligence sharing, joint maritime law enforcement and diplomatic coordination on fisheries and resource disputes.
Military activities around Taiwan continue to increase
The warning comes amid China’s continued military activities near Taiwan.Taiwan’s military will begin a five-day combat readiness exercise on Monday aimed at improving its ability to respond to sudden escalations from China and strengthening the rapid transition from peacetime to wartime.Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense said the exercise will focus on realistic combat scenarios using “actual troops, actual terrain, real-time, using actual equipment and through actual implementation,” Reuters reported.Separately, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said on Sunday that it had discovered two Chinese military aircraft, eight naval vessels and four official ships operating around Taiwan.The Ministry of National Defense stated that Taiwan’s armed forces are paying close attention to developments and responding appropriately.China claims Taiwan as part of its territory, while Taiwan maintains its own government, military and democratic system, making Taiwan a source of ongoing tension in the region.
