PLA military drills 'legal, legitimate and necessary'

The Ministry of National Defense said on Friday that the People's Liberation Army's military exercises around China's Taiwan island are targeted at "Taiwan independence" forces and external interference, and are "completely reasonable, legal, legitimate and necessary".

Ministry spokesman Wu Qian made the remarks on Friday afternoon in response to some United States officials who claimed that the PLA exercises escalated tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

On Thursday morning, the PLA Eastern Theater Command announced two-day joint military exercises in the Taiwan Strait and to the north, south and east of Taiwan, as well as areas around the islands of Jinmen, Matsu, Wuqiu and Dongyin, which are located in the Taiwan Strait.