TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — China said Wednesday (Aug. 23) it planned two days of live-fire artillery drills near Fuzhou on its side of the Taiwan Strait for this week.

The announcement came in a message from the Maritime Safety Administration warning shipping to stay out of an area in the Xinghua Bay from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Thursday (Aug. 24) and Friday (Aug. 25). An artillery unit based in the city of Fuqing would be conducting live-fire drills in the area, the Liberty Times reported.

The latest exercises followed joint navy and air force drills near Taiwan on Aug. 19, described as a response to the trip by Vice President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) to the inauguration of President Santiago Pena in Paraguay. The journey also included stopovers in New York and San Francisco.