Will China Attack Taiwan?
Men's Journal|April - May 2022
As a Chinese takeover of Taiwan looms, the United States is facing its greatest challenge in the Pacific since World War II.
By Ryan Ho Kilpatrick
Will China Attack Taiwan?

Never mind. It already is.

Rugged, sparsely populated and weathered by storm-tossed seas, Taiwan's Matsu Islands rarely feel like a potential flashpoint between the world's superpowers. The skies over this isolated archipelago five and a half miles off the Chinese mainland dim so dramatically after the sun sinks into the Taiwan Strait that part of it is seeking international recognition as a dark-sky island.”

Except, that is, on the nights that fleets of Chinese fishing boats called “squid jiggers” encircle its craggy shores and set the night ablaze with heavy-duty green LEDs used to simulate sunlight and draw their quarry into purse-seiner nets near the water's surface. In daylight, these ships are often replaced by the skull-rattling drone of Chinese sand-dredging vessels. Their operations are harming marine ecosystems, driving some birds to the brink of extinction and destroying submarine cables in the quest to feed the insatiable Chinese construction industry.

To Wen Lii, director of the local chapter of Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, these Chinese activities aren't just a nuisance or even criminal. They're a form of gray zone tactics. Though no official definition exists of these increasingly common quasi-military provocations, the Harvard National Security Journal defines them as state activities used to “gain a strategic advantage over an adversary while remaining below the level that would trigger a military response.”

This story is from the April - May 2022 edition of Men's Journal.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the April - May 2022 edition of Men's Journal.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM MEN'S JOURNALView All
Fantasy League
Men's Journal

Fantasy League

Inflation, war and endless political campaign ads got you down? Hollywood wants to take you far away.

time-read
2 mins  |
August - September 2022
The Tug Trip
Men's Journal

The Tug Trip

Chasing grizzlies and pushing deep into coastal British Columbia aboard a uniquely Canadian touring vessel.

time-read
9 mins  |
August - September 2022
Death, Incorporated
Men's Journal

Death, Incorporated

How Putin's mercenary army known as the Wagner Group does the Kremlin's dirtiest work in Ukraine and in conflict zones around the world.

time-read
10+ mins  |
August - September 2022
Cynthia Addai-Robinson
Men's Journal

Cynthia Addai-Robinson

The British-born actor trades the Shire's misty mountains for a fantasy island in Amazon Prime's prequel to J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

time-read
3 mins  |
August - September 2022
Idris Elba – Been Around the Block
Men's Journal

Idris Elba – Been Around the Block

Superstar actor Idris Elba hits 50 in September. But we might have not seen his prime yet.

time-read
6 mins  |
August - September 2022
American Ruins
Men's Journal

American Ruins

This country's unmatched and unlimited industrial might helped define the 20th century. But that was then, and this is now.

time-read
10 mins  |
August - September 2022
NICK KROLL
Men's Journal

NICK KROLL

The comedic powerhouse and man of many voices behind Big Mouth and Human Resources returns to the big screen in the star-studded thriller Don't Worry Darling.

time-read
2 mins  |
August - September 2022
HAIL TERRY
Men's Journal

HAIL TERRY

Four-time Super Bowl champion, avuncular television football analyst and all-around entertainer TERRY BRADSHAW's secret to career longevity? Letting it rip.

time-read
3 mins  |
August - September 2022
EVOLUTION OF Z REVOLUTION
Men's Journal

EVOLUTION OF Z REVOLUTION

How Nissan reinvented the smart, soulful sports car.

time-read
2 mins  |
August - September 2022
PLUNGE RIGHT IN
Men's Journal

PLUNGE RIGHT IN

Mallorca's cliff-lined coast is the peak playground for deep-water soloing-as grippingly demonstrated by the emerging sport's top climber.

time-read
2 mins  |
August - September 2022