China sends warships and aircraft around Taiwan for second day

China sent warships and aircraft near Taiwan for a second day on Friday and said the island remains its “inseparable part”, after President Tsai Ing-wen angered Beijing by meeting with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

China sent warships and aircraft near Taiwan for a second day on Friday and said the island remains its "inseparable part", after President Tsai Ing-wen angered Beijing by meeting with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Three Chinese warships sailed in waters surrounding the self-ruled island, while a fighter jet and an anti-submarine helicopter also crossed Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ), the Defence Ministry said in Taipei.

Ms. Tsai returned on Friday after visiting Taiwan's dwindling band of official diplomatic allies in Latin America, with two U.S. stopovers that included meetings with Mr. McCarthy and other lawmakers.

"We let the international community see that Taiwan is more united when facing pressure and threats," she told reporters, describing her trip as a success.

"We will never yield to suppression and we will not stop interacting with the world because of any hindrance."

Hours before her meeting with Mr. McCarthy in Los Angeles on Wednesday, China sent its Shandong aircraft carrier through Taiwan's southeastern waters on its way to the western Pacific.

Beijing said earlier on Friday that "Taiwan is an inseparable part of China", after repeatedly warning against the Tsai-McCarthy meeting.