China warns Taiwan independence and peace are ‘mutually exclusive’ as military drills conclude

A China Coast Guard ship sailing towards the zone where China said it would conduct live-fire exercises north-east of Pingtan island, the closest point in China to Taiwan, on April 10. - AFP

TAIPEI, April 10 (Reuters): China ended three days of military drills around Taiwan on Monday saying they had tested integrated military capabilities under actual combat conditions, having practised precision strikes and blockading the island that Beijing views as its own.

Taiwan responded to Beijing's announcement by saying it would "never relax" its efforts to strengthen combat readiness and would closely monitor China's missile forces and movements of the Shandong aircraft carrier.