New Zealand raised fresh concerns Monday over nearby live-fire drills conducted by Chinese warships armed with “extremely capable” weapons, an unprecedented show of firepower last week that analysts say are part of Beijing’s ongoing plan to build a blue-water navy with global reach.

Australia's defense forces, joined by New Zealand, have been monitoring Chinese navy vessels since they were spotted last week.

China’s Defense Ministry says that Australia made “unreasonable accusations” and deliberately hyped the situation after three planes headed to New Zealand changed course in midflight because of live-f

China defence ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said on Sunday that Australian complaints over recent Chinese live-fire naval drills in international waters between Australia and New Zealand were "hyped up" and "inconsistent with the facts".

China's naval exercise in the Tasman Sea has put Australia and New Zealand on alert, with Canberra calling it "unusual".

Australia accused China on Saturday of failing to give satisfactory reasons for what it called inadequate notice of a live-fire drill in waters between Australia and New Zealand that forced airlines to divert flights.

Beijing on Sunday said Canberra had “deliberately hyped” recent Chinese naval exercises near the Australian coast and confirmed its forces had used live fire in an incident th

The defence ministry has hit back at Australia’s response to its naval exercises off the east coast, labelling Canberra’s protests as “unreasonable”.

China’s live-fire naval exercises in the Tasman Sea triggered heightened concern but relatively muted criticism from the leaders of Australia and New Zealand on Saturday.

The verbal crossfire follows Australia’s complaint that it did not receive sufficient notice of a military drill conducted by Chinese warships on Friday.