US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told a meeting of top Asian diplomats on Friday that China’s response to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan was “grossly provocative”, according to a Western official quoted by Reuters.

Speaking at an East Asia summit in Cambodia, Blinken said China was trying to intimidate not only Taiwan but also the island’s neighbors after launching its largest-ever military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, the official said.

China’s military fired “several” ballistic missiles into the waters around Taiwan during its military maneuvers on Thursday, Taipei’s defense ministry said, condemning “irrational actions that undermine regional peace.”

Chinese state media said the drills, which began on Thursday, were aimed at simulating an air and sea “blockade” around Taiwan.

On Thursday, footage showed military helicopters flying past Pingtan Island, one of Taiwan’s closest points to mainland China.

Chinese ballistic missiles may have landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) for the first time, Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said on Thursday.

“Japan has sent a note of protest to China through diplomatic channels,” Nobuo Kishi also noted, describing the incident as “a serious problem affecting national security and the safety of our citizens.”

The military deployment was a deliberate show of force after Nancy Pelosi left Taiwan late Wednesday for South Korea, one of the final stops on her Asia tour, which ends in Japan this weekend.

Hours after it left Taipei, the island’s defense ministry said China had sent more than 20 fighter jets across the median line in the Taiwan Strait.

Already in Tokyo, Nancy Pelosi said at a press conference on Friday that the United States “will not allow” China to isolate Taiwan, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday.