The United States has called on China to exercise “restraint” and avoid actions that raise tensions following a series of war games around Taiwan simulating a blockade of the island.

China kicked off military maneuvers around Taiwan that it said included live-fire drills, in a dramatic show of force after the US announced one of its biggest arms packages ever for the self-run democracy.

China claims democratically governed Taiwan as as its own, although the Communist Party in Beijing has never ruled the island since coming to power in the Chinese mainland in 1949. Taipei, meanwhile, counts the United States as its strongest international backer and its main arms supplier.

China launches largest military drills ever around Taiwan as war tensions spike following record $11.1 billion U.S. arms sale to the island nation.

China’s top diplomat has slammed a record U.S. military sale to Taiwan. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday also blasted what he called pro-independence forces in Taiwan and the leaders of Japan.

China’s military mobilized army, navy, air and rocket units around Taiwan for two days of military drills aimed at sending a “serious warning” against any push for Taiwanese independence and “external” forces interfering with the island.

United States on Thursday took note of China's military exercise around Taiwan, claiming that it \"increases tensions unnecessarily.\"In a press stateme.

China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory, has repeatedly refused to rule out the use of force to bring the democratically governed island under its control.

China’s decision to bring serious firepower to bear for military drills in the waters off Taiwan this week has deep roots both in the past several weeks and the past several decades

The drills began 11 days after the U.S. announced a record $11.1 billion arms package to Taiwan and are Beijing's largest exercises to date by area and the closest yet to the island.