The Latest on Chinese War Games, Ukraine Peace Talks, and Israeli Settlement Expansion
Welcome back to the weekly report, this week China launched massive war games around Taiwan, Trump and Zelenskyy met to discuss peace in Ukraine, and Israel approved the creation of 19 new settlements in Palestine.
On Monday, December 29, China launched what they call Justice Mission 2025. This so-called Justice Mission is a series of massive military drills encircling Taiwan. The exercises involve simulated strikes on targets, live-fire drills, and naval maneuvers designed to blockade key ports. These drills are the largest in years, marking an escalation in China-Taiwan relations. They come following the largest sale of U.S. military equipment to Taiwan to date, valued at around $11 billion. Shi Yi, spokesperson for Chinese Eastern Theater Command, said the drills are “a stern warning against ‘Taiwan Independence’ separatist forces and external interference, and it is a legitimate and necessary action to safeguard China’s sovereignty and national unity.” Taiwan put its military on high alert, and conducted its own rapid response drills.
President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy met on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago to discuss a peace plan to end the war in Ukraine. Trump said that progress was made, but “thorny” issues remain unresolved. It is still unclear if Russia will agree to any peace plan that doesn’t overwhelmingly favor them. Trump and Zelenskyy plan to meet again in Washington in January 2026 to continue peace talks.
News broke widely this past week that Israel approved the creation of 19 new Jewish settlements in the Palestinian West Bank in early December. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right member of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, was a leading advocate for the expansion. Smotrich said in August that the creation of new settlements in the West Bank would help “Bury the idea of a Palestinian state.”
