Beijing: As the US and its allies conducted their drills in the Western Pacific on Tuesday, China started its military exercises in the East China Sea to the north of Taiwan. These exercises included live-fire drills from warships.

China regularly holds exercises along its coast, but those that are close to the territory it claims as Taiwan frequently draw the most attention.

In preparation for live fire drills by warships, China's Maritime Safety Administration issued a no-sail zone warning for the area off Taizhou city in Zhejiang province on Tuesday from late morning to mid-afternoon.

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It stated that additional drills in the area would continue until late Tuesday night.

The drills are taking place close to the Dachen islands, which Taiwan ruled until 1955 before being forced to leave after other nearby islands were taken by Chinese forces in a bloody battle.

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Off the coast of China's Fujian province, Taiwan continues to hold control of the Matsu and Kinmen islands, which it has done since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taipei after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists.

According to the maritime safety agency, China will continue holding separate drills in a different northern region of the East China Sea until late Wednesday afternoon.

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China's exercises in the East China Sea take place at the same time as a naval drill involving the US, Japan, Canada, France, and Canada that began on Friday in the Philippine Sea.

According to a statement from the US 7th Fleet, this includes two carrier strike groups led by the US aircraft carriers USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan operating together for the first time since June 2020.