BEIJING — China on Sunday rejected Australia's criticism of its recent live-fire naval drills near Australia and New Zealand, calling the concerns "hyped up" and "inconsistent with the facts."

Responding to statements from Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles, who criticized Beijing for a lack of transparency, Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian insisted that the exercises were in full compliance with international law and conducted in international waters far from Australia’s coastline.

“The Australian side’s remarks are completely inconsistent with the facts,” Wu said, according to state broadcaster CGTN.

He added that China had issued multiple safety notices in advance and that the drills followed common international practices.

Marles, speaking on Saturday, had said that China had not provided a satisfactory answer regarding its warships' live-fire exercises in airspace southeast of Sydney.

He expressed concern that the short notice given by Beijing had caused an unnecessary security risk, leading to flight diversions between Australia and New Zealand.

"I don't think we have a satisfactory answer from China as to the question of the notice. We would have preferred that there was much more notice provided so that we didn't have the disconcerting set of circumstances yesterday," Marles said.

Despite the diplomatic tension, Marles acknowledged that China had not violated international law during the drills.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke with his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon on Friday and assured that there was no risk posed to any Australian or New Zealand assets during the Chinese exercises.

The latest dispute follows a series of military confrontations between Australia and China. Last week, Australia’s Defense Ministry accused a Chinese fighter jet of releasing flares in front of an Australian military plane in what it called an "unsafe and unprofessional" interaction over the disputed South China Sea.

China’s Defense Ministry dismissed the claims, accusing Australia of deliberately infringing on Chinese rights and interests in the South China Sea and then spreading false narratives to mislead the international community. — Agencies