China has been carrying out major military drills around Taiwan since early November. But contrary to some claims on social media, Beijing's armed forces have not actually implemented a blockade on the island; they just simulated it.
“Just in: China takes over Taiwan,” reads a post on X from November 5, featuring an animated map meant to show the ongoing annexation of the island. “In the past few hours, Chinese aircrafts and marine patrols were closing [sic] monitoring Taiwan and now its more clear and confirmed that any movements to and from Taiwan is now controlled by the Chinese military presence," it added.
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The animated map shows dozens of planes taking off from continental China and flying towards Taiwan, encircling the island and isolating it from the air. Meanwhile, dozens of ships from the Chinese navy also seem to be forming an airtight blockade, surrounding Taiwan. Other ships seem to be moving alongside two Chinese aircraft carriers, the Fujian and the Liaoning. The map garnered more than 700,000 views across several different X posts.
However, this interpretation of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s manoeuvres is misleading.
China has indeed deployed significant military means since November 2.
