Taiwan has said the military exercises are tantamount to a “maritime and aerial blockade” and have “violated Taiwan’s territorial waters and its contiguous zone.”
They also threaten to disrupt trade flows in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
The Taiwan Strait, a 110-mile-wide artery separating the island of Taiwan and continental Asia, is a key trade route for vessels carrying goods between major economies in northeast Asia such as China, Japan, and South Korea, and the rest of world.
The London-based shipping consultancy VesselsValue said there are currently 256 container ships and other vessels in Taiwanese territorial waters, with a further 60 estimated to arrive between Thursday and Sunday, when the drills will be performed.
“There is potential for substantial disruption to trade in the region,” said Peter Williams, a trade flow analyst at…
