BEIJING -- A spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry has called for objectivity on Chinese military drills in the South China Sea after official Vietnamese protests on the matter.

Vietnam's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Hai Binh said in a statement posted on the ministry's website late on Monday that a recent drill had seriously violated Vietnamese sovereignty. He demanded that China stop the activity.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei told a daily news briefing on Wednesday that the drill was a routine exercise under the Chinese navy's annual plan.

The drill was not targeted at any country, said Hong, without giving its date.