Military drill near Taiwan 'necessary'

Mainland slams response by island's leader, who called exercise 'a threat'

A spokesman for the Chinese mainland said a military drill by Chinese bombers and warships around Taiwan on Monday was routine and slammed the island's administration for misleading the Taiwan people and hyping tensions.

On Monday, various warships, bombers and reconnaissance aircraft of the People's Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command conducted "necessary training" around Taiwan as a means to test the joint assault capability between different branches of the military, Senior Colonel Zhang Chunhui, the theater command's spokesman, said in a statement on Monday.