The large-scale military drills Beijing launched near Taiwan in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to the island involve the “use of advanced weapons,” including state-of-the-art hypersonic DF-17 missiles, according to China’s Global Times newspaper.

Taiwan’s military fired flares to ward off Chinese aircraft near islands far off the island's western coast, officials claimed, as Taipei remains on high alert during a large air and naval exercise by Beijing in the aftermath of a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.