China is holding military exercises in the East China Sea and the South China Sea near Taiwan this week, days after a defence white paper said Beijing would not rule out retaking the island by force.
The China Maritime Safety Administration 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”.
The announcements said drills in the East China sea were scheduled to run through Thursday and the ones in the South China Sea would end Friday.
China’s state-run Global Times tabloid said in a report Monday that the drills had been expected to involve “all military branches of the People’s Liberation Army and serve as a warning to Taiwan secessionists.”
