INTERNATIONAL: Taiwan air force jets have screamed into the sky on Wednesday, January 5 in a drill simulating a war scenario, showing its combat readiness amid heightened military tensions with China, which claims the island as its own.

Ground forces also went through drills, with armoured vehicles and soldiers seen performing exercises through forested and urban areas.

The exercises were part of a three-day drill to show Taiwan's battle readiness ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday at the end of this month.

Tensions across the sensitive Taiwan Strait have been rising in the past few years, with Taiwan complaining of repeated missions by China's air force near the democratic island. It has termed China's activities as "grey zone" warfare, designed to both wear out Taiwan's forces by making them repeatedly scramble, and also to test its responses.