A spokesperson of the Chinese Mission to the EU criticized the statement of the G7 foreign ministers and the EU high representative over China’s Taiwan region, according to the Global Times.

The Chinese Mission to the EU called it “ugly” and “shameless” and said that “it is reminiscent of the ‘Eight-Power Allied Forces’ that invaded China a hundred years ago.”

“What is ugly? What is shameless? The statement of the G7 foreign ministers and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy is a living specimen of all that…They collude, do evil and call white black,” said the spokesperson on Thursday, Global Times reported.

The G7 foreign ministers and the EU high representative said in a joint statement yesterday that they are concerned by the “threatening actions by China” across the Taiwan Straits, which “risk unnecessary escalation.”

On Thursday, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met top South Korean political leaders — a day after she concluded her historic visit to Taiwan.

Ms Pelosi and other members of Congress flew to South Korea on Wednesday evening, as part of an Asian tour that included stops in Singapore and Malaysia. After South Korea, they will travel to Japan.

On Thursday, Ms Pelosi met South Korean National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin Pyo and other senior members of Parliament for talks on regional security, economic cooperation and climate issues.

Before their talks, live TV footage showed Mr Kim and Ms Pelosi bumping elbows and posing for a photo in front of South Korean and US national flags.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is calling for calm in the Taiwan Strait.

The SE Asian nations have urged against any “provocative action” by China in the wake of Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.

In a statement by the 10-nation group on Thursday, they said that they were concerned the situation could “destabilize the region and eventually could lead to miscalculation, serious confrontation, open conflicts and unpredictable consequences among major powers.”

Both US secretary of state Antony Blinken and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi were taking part in the ongoing ASEAN meetings in Phnom Penh on Thursday and Friday.

Taiwan today called China’s largest-ever live military drills around the island “illegitimate and irresponsible”.

Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party said that China’s drills on the busiest international waterways and aviation routes are “irresponsible, illegitimate behavior.”

Taiwan’s cabinet spokesman also condemned the drills and said that the websites of the defense ministry, the foreign ministry and the presidential office were attacked by hackers.

It was reported that as soon as Nancy Pelosi left the island yesterday, an unidentified aircraft flew above the area of ​​Taiwan’s outlying Kinmen islands near the mainland coast. Taiwan’s defense ministry said that they had to fire flares to drive it away.

After Nancy Pelosi left Taiwan on Wednesday evening, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying called her visit a “provocation and violation of China’s sovereignty.

“What Pelosi has done is definitely not a defense and maintenance of democracy, but a provocation and violation of China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” she said.

“Pelosi’s dangerous provocation is purely for personal political capital, which is an absolute ugly political farce,” she added. “China-US relations and regional peace and stability is suffering.”

China began its unprecedented live-fire military drills in six areas that ring Taiwan on Thursday.

The state-owned CCTV said that the military drills would end at 0400 GMT on Sunday.

The drills would include live firing on the waters and in the airspace surrounding Taiwan, it said.

Meanwhile, Taiwan officials have said that the drills violate United Nations rules, invade Taiwan’s territorial space and are a direct challenge to free air and sea navigation.

Taiwan has deployed missile systems to track the movement of Chinese air force activities near the Median line, Reuters reported.

China began its largest-ever military exercise today in wake of Nancy Pelosi’s highly-controversial visit to the island.

It was also reported that Taiwan’s navy chips are staying close to the median line to monitor Chinese navy activities.

Several military aircraft briefly crossed the median line today morning, according to media reports. Taiwan said that it fired flares to drive away Chinese unidentified aircraft.

Taiwan said on Thursday that it had fired flares to drive away an unidentified aircraft — probably drones — that had flown in on Wednesday night above the area of ​​its Kinmen islands.

China had warned Taiwan of the “consequences” of Nancy Pelosi’s visit and announced military drills in six locations surrounding Taiwan soon after she landed in Taipei on Tuesday night.

Major General Chang Zone-sung of the Army’s Kinmen Defense Command told Reuters that the Chinese drones came in a pair and flew into the Kinmen area twice on Wednesday night, at around 9pm and 10pm local time.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, the highest-level trip by a US official in 25 years, has sparked a diplomatic crisis between the US and China.

Beijing warned the United States that it was “playing with fire” by allowing the speaker’s visit to take place, and even Joe Biden had cautioned against it.

So why is Ms Pelosi’s trip so controversial?

Here’s what you need to know.

US House speaker Nancy Pelosi wrapped up her highly-controversial, historic visit to Taiwan on Wednesday amid massive criticism from China.

Ms Pelosi is the first highest-ranking American official in 25 years to visit Taiwan despite strong warnings from China. In fact, China had openly criticized her visit with Chinese state-owned media calling the trip an “opening salvo of war”.

But she had said that she and other members of Congress were visiting Taiwan to show they “will not abandon their commitment” to the self-governing island.

Maroosha Muzaffar has the details.