TOKYO, August 4. /TASS/. Five ballistic missiles launched by China during its large-scale drills around Taiwan on Thursday fell in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said.

"According to our data, five Chinese ballistic missiles fell in Japan’s exclusive economic zone," Kishi said.

"In this regard, a protest was lodged to the Chinese side via diplomatic channels," the Japanese defense minister said.

As Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported, this is the first incident of this kind on record.

The South China Morning Post newspaper reported earlier on Thursday that China’s People’s Liberation Army had launched several Dongfeng ballistic missiles into waters northeast and southwest of Taiwan during the drills. The Taiwanese military came up with a statement condemning such "irrational actions aimed at undermining regional peace."

The Chinese troops switched to sweeping live-fire drills in six water areas around Taiwan on August 4. The maneuvers kicked off at 12:00 local time (07:00 a.m. Moscow time) and will last until the mid-afternoon of August 7. As Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported earlier, three of the six areas of the drills overlap with the waters that the island’s administration considers as its territorial waters.

The news about the Chinese Amy’s maneuvers appeared several minutes after a plane carrying US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi touched down in Taipei Songshan Airport on the evening of August 2. The scenario of China’s drills envisages live-firings and the Chinese authorities have warned about banning civil aircraft and ships from entering the relevant six water areas. In experts’ estimates, the current maneuvers will surpass by their scope similar drills held during the crisis in the Taiwan Strait in 1996-1997.