Blinken: China military drills are 'significant escalation'

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that China's military exercises aimed at Taiwan including missiles fired into Japan's exclusive economic zone represent a "significant escalation".

China's military drills were launched following a visit earlier this week by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan that infuriated Beijing.

"China has chosen to overreact and use Speaker Pelosi's visit as a pretext to increase provocative military activity in and around the Taiwan Strait,'' Blinken said at a news conference in the Cambodian capital.

Blinken also said the US stands in "strong solidarity" with Japan following the "dangerous actions China has taken".