China launches live-firing drills around Taiwan in 2nd day of exercises aimed at further isolating the island

China launched 10 hours of live-firing exercises around Taiwan on Tuesday, deploying new amphibious assault ships alongside bomber aircraft and warships on the second day of its largest-ever war games aimed at rehearsing a blockade of the island.

Taiwan said it was placing forces on alert and called the Chinese government "the biggest destroyer of peace."

The Eastern Theatre Command said the drills would take place until 6 p.m. (5:00 a.m. ET) in the sea and airspace of five locations surrounding Taiwan, and that naval and air force units were drilling strikes on maritime and aerial targets as well as anti-submarine operations to the democratically governed island's north and south.

Taiwan's aviation authority said more than 100,000 international air travellers would be affected by flight cancellations or diversions, with only a northeast corridor to Japan open for commercial flights. Routes to the offshore islands of Kinmen and Matsu near China's coast are blocked.

China's Maritime Safety Administration on Monday designated two further zones within which live-firing would take place, making the "Justice Mission 2025" drills the largest to date by total coverage and in areas closer to Taiwan than previous exercises.

The war exercises began 11 days after the U.S. announced a record $11.1 billion US arms package to Taiwan, drawing the Chinese defence ministry's ire and warnings that the military would "take forceful measures" in response.

The exercises — China's sixth major round of war games since 2022, when then-U.S. house speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the democratically governed island — are intended to rehearse a rapid encirclement of the island to destroy its weapons stockpile and obstruct efforts to resupply Taiwan from Japan or nearby U.S. bases, analysts say.

"This constitutes a blatant provocation of the international situation," said a senior Taiwan security official, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. "As one of the world's most critical shipping lanes, they seek to reshape the international order according to their own agenda."

Some $2.45 trillion US in trade moves through the Taiwan Strait each year, while the airspace above the island serves as a corridor connecting China, the world's second-largest economy, with the fast-growing markets of East and Southeast Asia.

The official said Taipei is closely monitoring whether China would seek "further provocation" in the drills on Tuesday, including flying missiles over Taiwan, similar to the Chinese drills in 2022.

"China is trying to make progress in asserting dominance over the entire island chain through extreme pressure tactics in various ways," the official said.

The Chinese military said it had deployed destroyers, bombers and other units to drill sea-based assaults, air defence and anti-submarine operations on Tuesday, to "test sea and air forces' ability to coordinate for integrated containment and control."

Taiwan's defence ministry said 130 Chinese military aircraft and 22 navy and coast guard vessels had been operating around the island in the 24 hours leading up to 6 a.m. local time on Tuesday, with 90 planes crossing the median line that divides the Taiwan Strait.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he was not informed of the military exercise in advance but that he was not worried because China has been "doing naval exercises for 20 years in that area." Touting his "great relationship" with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump suggested he didn't think Xi was going to attack Taiwan.