Taipei: France’s latest national strategic report has highlighted China’s repeated military exercises around Taiwan and asserted that Beijing’s escalating pressure on Taipei has created unease in the region. The 2025 National Strategic Review released Monday said the growing sophistication and intensity of China’s military exercises around Taiwan and its continued pursuit of a fait accompli strategy in the South China Sea reflect Beijing’s ambitions to become more assertive in the region.
According to Focus Taiwan, the report emphasized the unprecedented scale of Chinese military maneuvers around Taiwan in 2024 and 2025, marking a significant acceleration in China’s military capability enhancement. The report also pointed out that the perceived unpredictability of American policy under President Donald Trump has further exacerbated the threat.
The report described the regional situation as particularly dangerous and volatile, highlighting uncertainty over the security guarantees provided by the United States to its Asian allies and partners. China, the report noted, is employing novel hybrid actions, including cyber operations and technological advances in defense technologies such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and space technologies, to further its objectives.
Furthermore, the report underscored China’s continued expansion of its nuclear arsenal. China remains the only permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons that has not declared a moratorium on producing fissile material, with ambitions to possess a thousand nuclear warheads by 2030 and 1,500 by 2035.
The strategic review also highlighted China’s development of ballistic capabilities, citing the testing of 310 ballistic missiles in 2024 and the firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile with a claimed range of 12,000 kilometers in the Pacific Ocean. While Russia is listed as a primary threat to France and Europe, the report noted that China is also eyeing French overseas territories, particularly New Caledonia, due to its strategic location and nickel resources.
The report analyzed Taiwan’s economic significance, emphasizing strategic dependencies that require France to anticipate global economic risks in potential conflicts, especially given Taiwan’s critical role in the semiconductor supply chain. The publication of the report coincides with French President Emmanuel Macron’s confirmation of an additional 6.5 billion euros (US$7.60 billion) in military spending, increasing the defense budget to 64 billion euros by 2027, two years ahead of schedule.