Seventy-one Chinese military aircraft crossed the sensitive median line of the Taiwan Strait yesterday as China began drills around Taiwan in anger at President Tsai Ing-wen's meeting with the speaker of the US House of Representatives.

The three-day drills, announced the day after Tsai returned from the United States, had been widely expected after Beijing condemned her Wednesday meeting with Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles.

Beijing's announcement also came just hours after China hosted a visit by senior European leaders.

The People's Liberation Army said it had started the combat readiness patrols and "Joint Sword" exercises around Taiwan, having said earlier it would be holding them in the Taiwan Strait and to the north, south and east of Taiwan "as planned".

"This is a serious warning to the Taiwan independence separatist forces and external forces' collusion and provocation, and it is a necessary action to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity," the Chinese army's Eastern Theatre Command said in a statement.

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said as of 4:00 pm (0800 GMT) on yesterday it spotted 71 Chinese aircraft, including fighter jets and bombers, crossing the median line that normally serves as an unofficial barrier between the two sides, as well as nine Chinese ships.

A man takes a photo of a woman under a frame in front of the Taiwan Strait which marks the closest point in the mainland to Taiwan, on Pingtan island, in China’s southeast Fujian province, yesterday. Photo: AFP

China was using Tsai's US visit "as an excuse to carry out military exercises, which has seriously damaged regional peace, stability and security", the ministry said in a statement.

"The military will respond with a calm, rational and serious attitude, and will stand guard and monitor in accordance with the principles of 'not escalating nor disputes' to defend national sovereignty and national security."

Chinese state television released what it said was footage of the drills, set to stirring martial music and showing warships at sea and mobile missile launchers being readied, though did not show missiles being fired. It said fighter aircraft went up armed with live weapons.

There was no broader sense of alarm in Taiwan about the drills, where people are long accustomed to Chinese threats.

A senior Taiwan official familiar with security planning in the region told Reuters the aircraft involved in the morning missions had only crossed the median line briefly.

The situation was "as expected" and manageable, and Taiwan's government has rehearsed various scenarios for its response, the person said on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

Writing on her Facebook page, Tsai said she was briefed about the security situation and that the military was at its post around the clock.

"Taiwan will stand with all democracy-loving partners in the world and jointly assume the responsibility of ensuring regional stability and prosperity," she added.

Taiwanese officials had expected a less severe reaction to the McCarthy meeting, given it took place in the United States, but they had said they could not rule out the possibility of China staging more drills.

China's announcement came hours after French President Emmanuel Macron left China, where he met President Xi Jinping and other senior leaders.