China announces new military drills as US politicians visit Taiwan

US politicians arrive at at the parliament building in Taipei, Taiwan (Johnson Lai/AP)

China has announced more military drills around Taiwan as the island’s president met members of a US congressional delegation in a further sign of support by US lawmakers for the self-governing island which Beijing claims as its own.

The visit came less than two weeks after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan, which prompted days of threatening military exercises by China, including the firing of missiles over the island and into the Taiwan Strait.