China insisted on Monday it would never renounce the "use of force" to take control of Taiwan, after ending a day of military drills around the self-ruled island that Beijing said was a "stern warning" to "separatist" forces.

China employed a record 125 aircraft, as well as its Liaoning aircraft carrier and ships, in large-scale military exercises surrounding Taiwan and its outlying islands Monday, simulating the sealing off of key ports in a move that underscores the tense situation in the Taiwan Strait,

Scores of Chinese aircraft and dozens of ships surrounded Taiwan, after President Lai Ching-te rejected Beijing’s claim over the island.

Taiwan reported a Chinese aircraft carrier group sailing to the island's south on Sunday, as China's military put out a video saying it was "prepared for battle" amid concerns in Taipei about the possibility of a new round of Chinese war games.

China launched extensive military exercises around Taiwan this week in what it has labeled a “major warning” against Taiwan’s independence ambitions. These drills, conducted by the Chinese military’s Eastern Theatre Command,

Taiwan announced that Chinese aircraft carriers were approaching the island, reports Reuters. This happened shortly after the Chinese military released a video about them being "prepared for battle." Taiwan reported that a Chinese aircraft carrier group had entered the waters near the Bashi Channel,