Why Taiwan’s idyllic eastern outlying islands are increasingly crucial in its defence calculus — SkimNews
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- Taiwan's Second Theatre Command held drills on Green Island and Orchid Island on July 16 for the first time in 30 years, rehearsing land-sea equipment transport and setting up defensive positions to thwart a surprise attack.
- China Coast Guard vessels have staged patrols and "special maritime traffic law enforcement" operations east of Taiwan since June, radioing passing merchant ships for crew and destination information on June 7 for the first time.
- On July 31, two Chinese coast guard vessels were detected east of Orchid Island, one drifting about 80km north-east; Taiwan's coast guard accused Beijing of "fake law enforcement, real expansion of power."
- In December 2025, China deployed a 40,000-tonne Type 075 landing helicopter dock south-east of Taiwan — capable of deploying 30+ helicopters and hundreds of marines — and analysts warned Green or Orchid Island could serve as forward operating bases to reinforce troops on Taiwan's main island, bypassing Fujian province.
- Orchid Island sits at the northern edge of the Bashi Channel, a maritime choke point linking the South China Sea to the Western Pacific that is central to Taiwan's wartime logistics, humanitarian assistance and external support.
- Green Island residents like 29-year-old cafe owner Pan Hsin-chieh welcomed the military attention but said they value a quiet life and freedom, with the nearby White Terror Memorial Park — commemorating martial-law-era political prisoners once held on the island — serving as a stark reminder of what is at stake.
Why it matters: Taiwan's long-held assumption that its eastern waters were a safe haven shielded by the central mountain range is being invalidated by expanding Chinese grey-zone operations. Green Island and Orchid Island have shifted from remote afterthoughts to potential flashpoints where Beijing could station helicopter units to bypass the Taiwan Strait and threaten Taiwan's wartime logistics and external supply lines.
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