Dozens of people have drowned or disappeared in the past weeks crossing from West Africa to the Canary Islands as Spain and Morocco attract criticism for slow sea rescues.

As the US tries to halt the slide in relations with China, Beijing’s determination to "reunify" Taiwan with the mainland is still the sticking point. Taiwan's foreign minister, Joseph Wu, talks to DW's Tim Sebastian from Taipei.

China's mass military exercises near Taiwan come at a time when NATO is holding a summit where leaders have called China as an opposing force with its "ambitions and coercive policies."

In an interview with FRANCE 24, Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said that Taiwan welcomed the final communiqué of the NATO summit, which criticised China's "stated ambitions and coercive policies". He stressed that NATO had "stated the truth" and that Taiwan appreciated that NATO was "paying attention" to the threat posed by Beijing in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Chinese fleet of warplanes marked a forceful display just as Taiwan prepares to conduct an anti-invasion military exercise.

Taiwan held drills at its main international airport in Taipei amid concerns over Chinese aggression towards the island. Taiwan's president said the exercises are necessary in order to protect critical infrastructure.

To prepare for a potential invasion from mainland China, Taiwan updated its annual war games with strategies used by Ukrainians against the Russian military.

The chipmaking giant has said it approved a $3.8 billion plan to build a factory in the German city of Dresden.

Taiwanese Vice President William Lai is on a brief visit to the US before heading to Paraguay. China has condemned this action, and called him a "troublemaker."

William Lai is in Paraguay to attend the presidential inauguration. Beijing, which claims the island of Taiwan as its own, has slammed his foreign trip.

The air and sea drills close to Taiwan are seen as a response to a visit of its Vice President William Lai to the US. China has derided Lai as a "troublemaker" who backs "Taiwanese independence" separatists.

Typhoon Haikui initially appeared to move through Taiwan and out to sea before its surprise second landfall on Monday. It is now heading towards China.