The surprise manoeuvres were condemned by Taiwan, while the United States called them "intimidation tactics". They came less than a month after Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te called China a "foreign hostile force".

Named "Strait Thunder-2025A", the drills were in the middle and southern parts of the Taiwan Strait as well as the East China Sea, the military said.

By Wednesday evening, a People's Liberation Army spokesman Shi Yi said "the Eastern Theater Command has completed all designated tasks of the joint exercises carried out from April 1 to 2".

Earlier, he said that Wednesday's exercises were meant to "test the troops' capabilities" in areas such as "blockade and control, and precision strikes on key targets".

The military also said it had held long-range live-fire drills and practised hitting "simulated targets of key ports and energy facilities".

AFP journalists saw fighter jets circling over the island of Pingtan, the closest Chinese territory to Taiwan and which houses a military base.

China's Shandong aircraft carrier was also carrying out drills testing the ability to "blockade" Taiwan, the Eastern Theater Command said.

Beijing's foreign ministry warned the "punishment will not stop" until Taiwan's leaders cease pushing for what it says is independence from China.

The democratic island of 23 million people is a potential flashpoint between China and the United States, which is Taiwan's most important security partner.

The US State Department said Beijing's "aggressive" military activities and rhetoric towards Taiwan "only serve to exacerbate tensions and put the region's security and the world's prosperity at risk".

The UK Foreign Office said it was "concerned" over the Chinese drills, calling them "part of a pattern of activity which is increasing tensions and risking dangerous escalation in the Taiwan Strait."

Chinese leaders oppose Washington's support for Taiwan and detest Lai, whom they call a "separatist".

- 'Abyss of misery' -

Wednesday's drills came a day after China sent its army, navy, air and rocket forces to surround Taiwan, prompting Taipei to dispatch its own air and maritime forces.

Taiwan's defence ministry said there was no live-fire near the island on Wednesday.

By early afternoon, 36 Chinese aircraft, 21 warships and 10 coast guard boats had been detected around Taiwan.

That compares with Tuesday's count of 21 warships, 71 aircraft and four coast guard vessels.

"Pursuing Taiwan independence will only endanger Taiwan and plunge Taiwan compatriots into an abyss of misery," said Chinese Ministry of Defence spokesman Zhang Xiaogang in a statement Wednesday.

Major General Meng Xiangqing, professor at the PLA National Defence University, warned more drills could follow.

"As long as Taiwan independence separatists dare to cross the line, the PLA will definitely act," Meng told state broadcaster CCTV.

- 'Robust' deterrence -

Beijing has ramped up military pressure on Taiwan in recent years and held multiple large-scale exercises around the island that are often described as rehearsals for a blockade and seizure of the territory.

Tensions have escalated since Lai took office in May 2024, adopting tougher rhetoric than his predecessor Tsai Ing-wen.

While Taiwan sees itself as sovereign, most nations, including the United States, do not recognise its claim to statehood and instead have formal diplomatic ties with China.

Last month, Lai called China a "foreign hostile force" and proposed 17 measures to combat growing Chinese espionage and infiltration.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed "robust, ready and credible deterrence" in the strait during a visit to the region last week.

Taipei analyst Wen-Ti Sung said China was using "stress test after stress test" to gauge the strength of US support for Taiwan and other allies in the region.

"China is creating occasion after occasion for the Trump administration to publicly show how its support is weaker or more conditional than in years past," Sung told AFP.

The United States is legally bound to provide arms to Taiwan, but Washington has long maintained "strategic ambiguity" when it comes to whether it would deploy its military to defend the island from a Chinese attack.

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