Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

Rather than obsessively scrutinizing situation maps and speculating about every movement, the DPP authorities should recognize an indisputable fact: In the fight against separatism and for national reunification, the PLA will never be absent and will never hesitate to act. Any separatist attempt to seek "Taiwan independence" by relying on external forces or military means will face severe punishment and is doomed to fail.

Recently, a map dotted with red markers has become a hot topic on the island of Taiwan. It began when diehard "Taiwan independence" separatist Joseph Wu posted the map on social media, claiming that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy and China Coast Guard (CCG) had "deployed 100+ vessels in the western Pacific." Two US think tanks jointly released a report, using a string of "may be" to speculate that the PLA was conducting a "major, unannounced military exercise." Taiwan region's so-called defense minister then followed suit, distorting the nature of these activities and smearing the PLA's normal maritime operations as "undermining" regional "peace and stability." Various forces have played along, taking turns speculating about and hyping the purported "silent drills," their objectives and details. The whole episode reeks of a calculated political effort to deliberately stoke tensions.

There is little mystery here that warrants such excessive speculation. Whether it is the series of military exercises including "Joint Sword" and "Strait Thunder," or regular naval patrols, and law-based maritime law enforcement patrols by the CCG, they are all legitimate arrangements within China's sovereignty - lawful, reasonable, and beyond dispute. Take the PLA Navy's Liaoning aircraft carrier group training in the western Pacific, for example. China's Ministry of National Defense has publicly stated that the training was part of the PLA's annual routine schedule, was not directed at any specific country or target, and was consistent with international law and practice.

Not to mention that the decision on whether to conduct military exercises, when to hold them and whether to release relevant information rests entirely with the PLA. Such decisions are made independently in accordance with China's defense needs and the situation across the Taiwan Straits, without any obligation to report to or seek approval from any other party. By deliberately portraying legitimate activities that have been clearly identified by official statements and are part of routine training arrangements as a "mysterious, unannounced military exercise," and repeatedly speculating about and sensationalizing this fabricated concept, certain forces are essentially trying to stoke public anxiety.

In addition, years of exercises conducted under explicit code names and announced in coordinated public releases have made the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities accustomed to a familiar playbook for managing public opinion on the island. Military activities around the Taiwan Straits are now shifting from periodic, concentrated operations to an around-the-clock, regularized presence. As early as April 2025, when the PLA Eastern Theater Command conducted joint exercises without an official code name, experts pointed out that such drills "have become routine and are nothing out of the ordinary for the PLA."

Those with a guilty conscience can be startled by even the sound of ordinary footsteps. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities' alarmist reaction to the "red-dot map" exposes their helplessness in the face of the new normal across the Taiwan Straits. They can neither deny the sovereign legitimacy of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) operations nor rely on their old tactics to cope with a military presence that has defied their expectations. All they can do is turn a single map into a political spectacle, manufacture panic out of "silence," and falsely label the PLA's legitimate operations as "undermining peace and stability."

For the majority of Taiwan compatriots, however, the PLA's regular presence around the Taiwan Straits serves to constrain the room for reckless moves by "Taiwan independence" separatist forces through sustained, visible and predictable deterrence, reducing the likelihood of miscalculation and dangerous adventurism. The stronger the deterrent capability of the people's armed forces, the more solid the guarantee that Taiwan residents can stay away from the ravages of war and enjoy peaceful, stable lives. This is a truth that cannot be turned on its head by a few slogans about "undermining peace and stability."

The DPP authorities have repeatedly hyped the so-called "silent military drills," hoping to prolong their political survival by stoking tensions. Yet such tactics cannot stop the balance of power across the Straits from continuing to shift in a direction favorable to national reunification. If the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces were truly as confident as they claim, why would they be so unnerved by routine naval activities at sea? Their anxiety reveals that they are acutely aware of their predicament in going against the tide of history and deeply fearful of the balance of strength across the Straits and the direction of public sentiment. What they fear is not any particular military exercise or drill, but an overarching trend that is beyond their control.

Let us put it more plainly: The PLA's regular presence around the Taiwan Straits will not change because of the political hype surrounding a "red-dot map," nor will it be halted by a chorus of accusations about "undermining peace and stability." Rather than obsessively scrutinizing situation maps and speculating about every movement, the DPP authorities should recognize an indisputable fact: In the fight against separatism and for national reunification, the PLA will never be absent and will never hesitate to act. Any separatist attempt to seek "Taiwan independence" by relying on external forces or military means will face severe punishment and is doomed to fail. National reunification is the ultimate outcome that leaves no room for speculation.