Taiwan accuses China of ‘provocative' drills

Taiwan accused China on Friday of raising tensions in the region with a “provocative” military patrol involving warplanes and warships near the island, an unusual public rebuke in what are typically routine accounts of Chinese military activity.

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Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, has complained of repeated Chinese military drills and patrols nearby.

Since President Lai Ching-te took office last year China has held three major rounds of war games.

Taiwan's defence ministry said that starting mid-afternoon on Friday, it had detected 21 Chinese military aircraft, including J-16 fighters, operating with warships to carry out “so-called joint combat readiness patrols” and “harass the airspace and seas around us.”