US, Canada warships cut through Taiwan Strait after Chinese drills
TAIPEI—A US and a Canadian warship have passed through waters separating Taiwan and China, a week after Beijing held large-scale military drills in the sensitive passage.
The United States and its allies regularly cross through the 180-kilometer Taiwan Strait to reinforce its status as an international waterway, angering Beijing.
China’s Communist Party has never ruled Taiwan, but it claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory and has said it would not renounce the use of force to bring it under its control.
“The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76) and Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver (FFH 331) conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit on Oct. 20,” the US Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement.
“Higgins and Vancouver’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrated the United States’ and Canada’s commitment to upholding freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle.”
China said on Monday that the US and Canadian actions had disrupted “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
‘Stern warning’
“The PLA Eastern Theater Command organized naval and air forces to monitor and remain on alert throughout the transit, handling the situation according to laws and regulations,” military spokesperson Captain Li Xi said in a statement.
Taiwan’s defense and foreign ministries did not immediately respond to Agence France-Presse’s (AFP) request for comment.
Beijing sent a record number of military aircraft as well as warships and coast guard vessels to encircle Taiwan on Oct. 14 in the fourth round of major drills in just over two years.
Taiwan deployed “appropriate forces” and put outlying islands on heightened alert in response to the exercises, which Beijing said were a “stern warning to the separatist acts of ‘Taiwan Independence’ forces.”
Beijing has ramped up military pressure on Taipei in recent years, deploying on a near-daily basis warplanes and other military aircraft as well as ships around the island.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said Monday it had detected 14 Chinese military aircraft and 12 navy vessels in the 24 hours to 6 am.
Myanmar attack
In a separate incident, China condemned on Monday an attack on its consulate in Myanmar and urged authorities to make every effort to arrest the perpetrators, a spokesperson of its foreign ministry said.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since February 2021 when the military ousted an elected civilian government in a coup, abruptly ending the impoverished country’s tentative steps towards becoming a full-fledged democracy.
Last week’s incident follows a surge in anti-China sentiment on social media in Myanmar, after its recent pressure on rebel groups to halt their fighting against the military regime.
A blast at 5 p.m. on Saturday caused no casualties but partially damaged the consulate premises, the ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, told a regular news conference.
China has lodged “serious representations” with authorities in Myanmar, calling for a thorough investigation and every effort to severely punish the perpetrators according to law, Lin said.
