China is launching its largest ever military drills in the seas around Taiwan following the visit of US politician Nancy Pelosi.
The live fire drill began at 12:00 local time (04:00 GMT) and was scheduled to take place within 12 miles of the island in several areas. Taiwan said China was trying to change the status quo in the region.
Ms Pelosi made a brief but controversial visit to Taiwan, which China considers a separate province.
The exercise is Beijing’s primary responsibility, although it has also blocked some trade with the island. Beijing says the exercise will take place in busy waterways and involve shooting long-range ammunition.
Taiwan says it amounts to a sea and air blockade, while the US said the exercise was irresponsible and could spiral out of control.
“For example, if China decides to fly planes over Taiwan’s airspace, there is a chance that Taiwan might try to intercept them. And we could see a mid-air collision; we could see a lot of different scenarios playing out,” she said.
Taiwan said it scrambled jets to warn of Chinese warplanes on Wednesday, and its military fired flares to drive away unidentified aircraft over the Kinmen islands, located close to the mainland,
Several ministries have suffered cyber-attacks in recent days, the Taiwanese government said. Taiwan has also asked ships to take different routes and is negotiating with Japan and the Philippines to find alternative aviation routes.
Japan has also expressed concern to China over the areas covered by the military drills, which it says overlaps with its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
In response, Chinese government spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Beijing did not accept the “so-called” Japan EEZ.
On Wednesday, according to local media reports, China detained a suspected Taiwanese separatist in the coastal Zhejiang province on suspicion of endangering national security.