China has carried out live-fire drills near Taiwan, a week after it conducted large-scale military exercises in a warning to the island. The drills took place on Tuesday near the Pingtan islands, off the coast of its southern Fujian province facing Taiwan.

China is conducting live-fire military drills off the coast of its southern Fujian province in a show of force aimed at Taiwan.

The drills were the latest show of force by China, which claims Taiwan as its territory and has protested Western support for the island.

China is holding live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait in an escalation of military activity just a week after Beijing held a record-setting air-and-sea drills around the island. China's Maritime Safety Administration warned boats to avoid venturing into the area around Niushan island in Fujian province for four hours starting from 9am (local time) on Tuesday.

Just a week after China conducted a huge air-and-sea drill as punishment for Taiwan's president rejecting Beijing's claims of sovereignty, it's now holding live-fire drills off the coast of its southern Fujian province facing Taiwan.

China’s growing military capabilities make a blockade of Taiwan increasingly feasible. With its powerful anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) systems, control over the South China Sea, and the world’s largest navy,