A Chinese state television report has provided a rare glimpse into People’s Liberation Army (PLA) wargaming, revealing simulations of battles unfolding near the coasts of Mexico and Cuba, around Taiwan, and in the Sea of Okhotsk. The footage, filmed at a military event in Xuchang, China, signals a potential expansion in the PLA’s global strategic planning.
In a striking departure from typical secrecy, a Chinese Central Television (CCTV) broadcast has pulled back the curtain on high-level military simulations, showing conflict scenarios playing out thousands of miles from China’s shores. The report, aired on Friday, featured footage from a People’s Liberation Army wargaming event where maps depicted simulated battles near the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and the airspace around Taiwan. This rare public insight suggests the Chinese military is actively gaming out potential conflicts in regions far beyond its traditional sphere of influence, reported CCTV.
The event, held in Xuchang in central Henan province, brought together 20 military units and academies to demonstrate dozens of domestically developed simulation systems. On one screen, the tell-tale indicators of opposing forces—red for the PLA and blue for the adversary—were seen maneuvering near Cuba and Mexico. According to the footage described in the report, some blue units congregated near Houston, Texas, before moving southeast, while red forces operated in the Caribbean. Researchers were shown pointing at the screen and discussing the tactical operation, though the report provided no specifics on the scenarios’ objectives or triggers.
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This visual evidence marks a significant disclosure. While China has deepened economic ties across Latin America, its military footprint there remains minimal. Simulating combat in the Gulf of Mexico—a strategic backyard of the United States—points to markedly expanded global ambitions for the PLA. “The fact that the PLA is modelling potential conflicts there suggests a shift in the Chinese military’s global ambitions,” analysts noted, based on the broadcast’s content. The systems on display were described as covering all domains—land, sea, air, space, and electromagnetic—and integrated AI-powered models and real-time simulation engines to create an immersive, low-cost training environment.
The Taiwan scenario was, unsurprisingly, central to another displayed map. Beijing views the self-ruled island as a breakaway province and has not renounced the use of force to achieve “reunification.” The PLA has conducted frequent live-fire exercises around Taiwan, but the wargaming footage formalizes these contingencies in a detailed simulation ecosystem. The report’s release follows heightened regional tensions, including a suggestion last month from Japanese politician Sanae Takaichi that Japan could intervene in a Taiwan conflict—a comment that drew fierce condemnation from Beijing.
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Other maps in the broadcast highlighted tensions in Northeast Asia. One simulation showed red forces clustered near Russia’s far eastern coast, with blue indicators over Japan’s Hokkaido and the disputed Kuril Islands. This aligns with increasing China-Russia military coordination, including recent joint air patrols over the Sea of Japan and East China Sea. In another explicit detail, the PLA simulated an air battle between its J-16 fighter jets and French-made Rafale fighters, a platform used by several regional air forces.
For military watchers, the sheer breadth of disclosed locations is as telling as the technology. The PLA has historically kept such strategic simulation details highly classified. By broadcasting this footage, CCTV and, by extension, the Chinese military may be sending a deliberate message about its capacity to plan for complex, multi-theater conflicts. As the report stated, the goal is to “help commanders learn how to fight without engaging in actual combat.” Now, the world has seen a preview of where the PLA is practicing to fight.
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