PLA Rehearse Intercepting Taiwanese Warplanes 'Trying To Bypass Blockade': Report

China is reportedly holding a military drill around Taiwan, where the People's Liberation Army (PLA) practiced intercepting "Taiwanese fighter jets and warships trying to break the simulated blockade."

The PLA Navy (PLAN) is conducting the exercises in the north of Taiwan, three days after the drills were supposed to end.

A press statement by the PLA's Eastern Theater Command said Wednesday it held a joint training in the "sea and airspace around Taiwan Island" the previous day. The statement added its missions included "air superiority operations, aerial refueling, and sea support to test and improve the PLA's ability to jointly blockade the sea and airspace around Taiwan."

A report by Taiwan News said the Chinese fighter jets took off from one of the training sites armed with live ammunition. They were then ordered by a ground command post to intercept "enemy" aircraft, before resuming their patrols, while in a standby state. The operation also saw a "new type of tanker" taking part. Several fighter jets also conducted successful aerial refueling to continue the "blockade mission."

According to the Chinese military, another simulation envisioned a PLAN frigate on a "police patrol mission" finding an "enemy ship heading at a high rate of speed" toward waters, where the drills were being held.

The Chinese vessel quickly sounded the alarm and "forced the enemy ship to turn around and flee" by occupying an attack position and broadcasting warning messages.

This comes as China said it would closely observe the situation in the Taiwan Strait, and regularly organize combat readiness security patrols there.

"Combat readiness security patrol means that the PLA will conduct patrols with full combat readiness, for example, warplanes will be equipped with various missiles and the ships will be fully equipped with weapons and personnel," Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Regular combat readiness security patrols in the Taiwan Strait means the PLA is ready for combat whenever the situation is threatened, Song added.

Meanwhile, reports said about 36 aircraft and 10 ships from China's military were still around Taiwan Wednesday. Of the 36 Chinese aircraft mentioned, 17 crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait. As on previous occasions, the Taiwanese military warned the Chinese aircraft to leave the area, while it also deployed air defense missile systems to monitor the activities of the planes.