Taiwan has condemned the latest round of Chinese military drills around the island as an “unreasonable provocation” after Beijing deployed warships and fighter jets as a “stern warning” to “separatist acts of Taiwan independence forces.

Taiwan reported a Chinese aircraft carrier group sailing to the island's south on Sunday, as China's military put out a video saying it was "prepared for battle" amid concerns in Taipei about the possibility of a new round of Chinese war games.

The Chinese military said the exercises, which will simulate strikes on land and at sea, would serve as “a stern warning” to “Taiwan independence forces.”