‘Provocation’: China condemns sailing of US, British warships through Taiwan Strait

BEIJING – China’s military on Sept 12 condemned the sailing of US and British warships through the sensitive Taiwan Strait, saying it ordered naval and air forces to monitor and warn the two ships.

The Eastern Theatre Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army said the US destroyer USS Higgins and British frigate HMS Richmond were engaged in “trouble-making and provocation”.

“The actions of the United States and Britain send the wrong signals and undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” it said in a statement.

Britain’s defence ministry said the sailing was a routine passage.

“Wherever the Royal Navy operates, it does so in full compliance with international law and norms, and exercises freedom of navigation rights in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.”

The US Navy also described the mission as a routine passage.

“The ships transited through a corridor in the strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state,” it said in a statement. “Navigational rights and freedoms in the Taiwan Strait should not be limited.”

Earlier on Sept 12, China’s navy said its third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, which is still undergoing sea trials, had

passed through the strait as well

.

Last week, Canadian and Australian warships also sailed through the strait.

The US Navy and, on occasion,

ships from allied countries

including Canada, Britain and France transit the strait, which they consider an international waterway, around once a month.

Taiwan also considers it an international waterway.

China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, says the strategic waterway is part of its territorial waters. Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s territorial claims.

China has over the past five years increased its military pressure on the island, including by staging war games nearby. REUTERS