Communist China deployed an aircraft carrier in a brazen show of military force near democratic Taiwan.

Footage shows fighter jets taking off from the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning near the Bashi Channel south of Taiwan on October 14.

Colonel Li Xi, spokesman for the Eastern Theater Command of the the People's Liberation Army (PLA), said the drill was conducted 'to test the PLA's joint combat capabilities'.

Taiwan officials condemned the military exercise. Joseph Wu, secretary-general of Taiwan's security council, said the Taiwan military 'will definitely deal with the threat from China appropriately'.

Though it is officially known as the 'Republic of China,' Taiwan has been governed separately from mainland China, which is known as the 'People's Republic of China.'

Unlike China, Taiwan has elections and high levels of human rights that meet international standards. But Beijing sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and has, in recent years, stepped up pressure - both economic and military - to stake its territorial claims on the island.

Communist chiefs are also said to be drawn by the lucrative semiconductor industry in Taiwan, which provides vital components to the West, potentially giving the CCP power over America if they were to bring chip production under state control.