Beijing holds military drills in East, South China Sea

China is holding military exercises in waters near Taiwan, days after Beijing reiterated it does not rule out military action against secessionist moves in the self-ruled island.

The China Maritime Safety administration said war games would come to an end in East China Sea on Thursday and South China Sea on Friday.

The agency did not clarify where the drills would be held, but issued notices on Sunday and Monday, warning against entering broad swaths of airspace and waters off the coast of eastern Zhejiang and southern Guangdong provinces due to “military activity.”

Details on the scale of the exercises or which military units were involved were not provided either.

Taiwan’s defense ministry said in a statement that it has been closely monitoring the situation in the strait to ensure safety and regional stability.

"The national army continues to reinforce its key defense capacity and is definitely confident and capable of defending the nation's security," it added.

China has sovereignty over the island and almost all world countries recognize that sovereignty under the policy known as One China.

The drills are being held just days after a US guided-missile cruiser sailed through the strategic Taiwan Strait, which separates the island from China.

SS