The Chinese military deploys massively around Taiwan to convey a "very straightforward" message.

Chinese naval ships and military planes have been substantially deployed in the past 24 hours, prompting Taiwan defense officials to express concerns about the potential for war as tensions escalate in the region.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's recent overseas trip to Hawaii and Guam has prompted China to send approximately a dozen ships and 47 military planes to the regional waters around the Taiwan Strait, in preparation for upcoming military drills.

The trip angered China, which claims Taiwan as its own.

Since May, Lai has been in office and recently spoke with U.S. congressional leaders by phone while in Guam.

Weeks after the U.S. approved a potential $2 billion arms sale package to Taiwan, including the delivery of an advanced air defense missile system battle tested in Ukraine and radar systems, visits came from foreign military officials.

The Chinese government has vowed to annex Taiwan by any means necessary, including military force, and regularly deploys ships and military aircraft near the island.

According to Lt. Gen. Hsieh Jih-sheng of Taiwan, China's navy is constructing two walls, one surrounding Taiwan and another beyond the first island chain, which stretches from Japan to the Philippines.

He stated that the message being conveyed is straightforward: "The Taiwan Strait belongs to us," referring to the waters separating Taiwan and China.

Officials in Taiwan claim that the deployment occurred without prior notice and are referring to it as a training exercise.

Hsieh cautioned that training can transform into exercises, and exercises can evolve into conflict.

"Under the status of normalized training, it can mobilize military forces on a large scale and conduct exercises in a vast area."

On Monday, Taiwan's military set up an emergency response center and announced flight restrictions in seven zones off China's east coast. The restrictions will remain in effect until Wednesday.

The U.S. has consistently demonstrated its backing for Taiwan through various military agreements, activities, and communications with Taiwanese officials.

In recent years, U.S. officials, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have met with Taiwanese officials, prompting Beijing to respond with saber-rattling.

In 2021, Pelosi visited the island and China responded with military drills. The drills happened again in 2023 when Tsai Ing-wen met with McCarthy in California.

China, viewing Lai as a separatist, held major military exercises around Taiwan following his inauguration in May and his National Day speech in October.

Many view President-elect Trump's nominees for UN ambassador, national security adviser, and secretary of state as "China Hawks."

During the Republican National Convention in mid-July, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who has been chosen for secretary of state, stated that he anticipated a re-elected Trump would "continue to support Taiwan" in his second term.

While Rubio has aligned with Trump on pushing Taiwan to boost its defense budget, not all security experts or Taiwanese people agree with this stance.

Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., has been nominated as ambassador to the United Nations, while Michael Waltz, R-Fla., is Trump's choice for national security adviser.

This report was contributed to by Anders Hagstrom and Eryk Michael Smith of Planet Chronicle, along with The Associated Press and Reuters.