China’s military is keeping silent on its large deployment of naval and coast guard ships off Taiwan this week.

China's defence ministry on Friday broke its silence about days of military activities around Taiwan, saying it was entitled to stage exercises and the military would "not be absent" if required to fight separatist forces.

According to the MND, of the eight People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, one crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the country's southwestern and southeastern air defence identification zone