TAIPEI (REUTERS) - Taiwan on Sunday (March 31) condemned what it called a "provocative" move from China after two Chinese fighter jets flew past a maritime line amid growing friction between Taipei and Beijing.

Earlier on Sunday, Taiwan scrambled aircraft to "drive away" two Chinese fighter jets which it said flew past a maritime border in Taiwan Strait, the self-ruled island's Defence Ministry said in a statement late on Sunday.

The ministry said China's move had "seriously impacted regional safety and stability".

There was no immediate reaction from Beijing.

China has repeatedly sent military aircraft and ships to circle Taiwan during drills in the past few years and worked to isolate the island internationally, whittling down its few remaining diplomatic allies.

The United States last week sent Navy and Coast Guard ships through the Taiwan Strait, as part of an increase in the frequency of movement through the strategic waterway despite opposition from China.

Taiwan is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the US-China relationship, which also include a trade war and China's increasingly muscular military posture in the South China Sea.