Amidst disputes and claims by other nations, China continues to conduct training drills and live-fire exercises in the South China Sea. China's defence ministry say exercises were part of a routine.

Each year, an estimated $5 trillion of maritime trade passes by the South China Sea. Various parts of the territory have been claimed by other countries for years. However, China continues to dominate the area.

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"The People's Liberation Army Navy in recent days organised a fleet to go to relevant seas in the South China Sea, by way of the Western Pacific, to carry out exercises," China's Defence Ministry said in a statement. "This action is a routine arrangement made in accordance with this year's naval training plan."

Images of the live drill conducted by the Chinese navy were posted on its state-run Twitter account, captioned as: "InPic: #Striking moments of the live fire #drill conducted by South #China Sea Fleet lately." However, the exact location of the routine exercises was not disclosed.

The US has criticised China for constructing man-made islands in the South China Sea's disputed Spratly archipelago. According to reports, the United States would monitor China's activities in the island by positioning its P-8 Poseidon spy plane in Singapore. This war machine can reportedly carry torpedoes and cruise missiles. Tensions increased when the U.S. flew its B-52 bombers near the artificial islands last month. In October, the USS Lassen also came within 12 nautical miles of China's claimed waters.

The United States explained their alliance with Singapore in a statement. According to the statement, the two countries "agreed on a broad framework for defence cooperation in five key areas, namely in the military, policy, strategic and technology spheres, as well as cooperation against non-conventional security challenges, such as piracy and transnational terrorism".

TagsTerritorial disputes in the South China Sea, U.S. Warship South China Sea, South China Sea Territorial Dispute, More Drills in South China Sea