Taiwan sees no large-scale Chinese military activities near island

Taiwan's defence ministry said on Tuesday it has not seen large-scale drills or actions by the Chinese military near the island so far after China condemned a brief U.S. visit by Taiwan Vice President William Lai. China on Sunday condemned a brief U.S. visit by Taiwan Vice President William Lai, saying that he was a separatist and "troublemaker through and through," and that Beijing would take strong steps to protect its sovereignty, drawing a rebuke from Taipei. China is likely to launch military drills this week near Taiwan, using Lai's U.S. stopovers as a pretext to intimidate voters ahead of next year's election and make them "fear war," Taiwanese officials say.