China's joint drills around the Taiwan island are a resolute punitive response to the provocation for "Taiwan independence" made by the leader of the Taiwan region in his May 20 speech and a serious warning to external forces that connive at and support "Taiwan independence" and interfere in China's internal affairs, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday.

Mao made the remarks at a regular press conference when asked to comment on the spokesperson of the U.S. State Department's statement. Last weekend, the spokesperson expressed "concern over the People's Liberation Army joint military drills around Taiwan."

Mao said the Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair that brooks no external interference, and the United States has no right to make irresponsible remarks on it. China's joint drills around the Taiwan island are a just move to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity and is necessary, legitimate and fully consistent with international law and common practices, Mao added.

She said after coming into office, the Taiwan region's leader did not even wait before laying bare his true identity as a separatist for "Taiwan independence," and his speech on May 20 is a declaration of his agenda for "Taiwan independence," which fully reveals his nature as a "worker for Taiwanese independence."

What has happened shows once again that the most dangerous change to the cross-Strait status quo and the biggest source of damage to cross-Strait peace are the separatist moves for "Taiwan independence" and connivance and support from U.S.-led external forces, Mao said.

In disregard of China's firm opposition, the United States is the one that acted wrongly first by sending a delegation and issuing a congratulatory statement by the Secretary of State on the so-called "inauguration ceremony," which sent a seriously wrong signal to "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, Mao said, adding that the groundless accusation the United States then made against China's lawful and legitimate steps to uphold national sovereignty and territorial integrity just compounded its mistake.

Mao said China urges the U.S. side to fully recognize the fundamental nature and dangerous ambition of "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, and the grave harm and enormous risks of "Taiwan independence" separatism to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and to China-U.S. relations, earnestly abide by the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiqués, honor the commitment made by the U.S. leaders on the Taiwan question and stop emboldening and supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist forces in any form.

"Our resolve to defend our sovereignty and territorial integrity will not waver. Our determination to oppose external interference in China's internal affairs will not change," Mao said, adding that "Taiwan independence" will lead nowhere and anyone who play with fire by supporting "Taiwan independence" will get burned, and anyone who seeks to challenge the one-China principle will invariably fail.