China on military drills near Taiwan; US amb leaving

China said on Friday its military drills near the Taiwan Strait during a high-level U.S. envoy's visit to Taiwan are "legitimate and necessary action."

The exercise was carried out to "safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity", said Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The second high-level U.S. envoy to visit Taiwan in two months began a day of closed-door meetings on Friday as China conducted the military drills near the Taiwan Strait.

Undersecretary of State Keith Krach, who handles the economic growth, energy and the environment portfolio, held talks with Taiwan's minister of economic affairs and the Cabinet’s vice premier.

He was due to meet with business leaders over lunch and dine with President Tsai Ing-wen later Friday.

In response to Krach's visit, the Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army held combat exercises near the Taiwan Strait.

It was at least the second round of war games this month aimed at intimidating supporters of the island's independent political identity.

China on Thursday condemned Krach's visit and warned it could retaliate.

It views Taiwan as part of its own territory and strongly opposes any type of formal interaction between other countries and the self-ruled island democracy.

Wang thanked outgoing U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad at the briefing.

Branstad is leaving at time of high tensions between between Washington and Beijing as they spar over the coronavirus pandemic, trade, technology, Hong Kong and the South China Sea.

The U.S. ambassador to China will step down early next month, ending a three-year tenure marked by a trade war and increasingly bitter relations between the world's two largest economies.