Two US Navy warships transit Taiwan Strait, first since Pelosi visit

TAIPEI • Two US warships sailed through the Taiwan Strait yesterday, the American navy said, the first such transit since China staged unprecedented military drills around the island.

In a statement, the US Navy said the transit "demonstrates the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific".

The Chinese military's Eastern Theatre Command said it was following the ships and was on high vigilance. It also said it was aware of all the ships' movements.

"Troops in the (eastern) theatre remain on high alert and are ready to thwart any provocation at any time," said Senior Colonel Shi Yi, spokesman for the Eastern Theatre Command.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army said the US had "openly hyped up" the ships' passage through the Taiwan Strait.

Tensions in the strait soared to their highest level in years this month after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei. Beijing then staged days of air and sea exercises around Taiwan. Taipei condemned the drills and missile tests as preparation for an invasion.

Taiwan lives under constant threat of invasion by China, which claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory to be reunified one day, by force if necessary.

Washington diplomatically recognises Beijing over Taipei, but maintains de facto relations with Taiwan and supports the island's right to decide its own future.

The US Seventh Fleet said the pair of Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers - the USS Antietam and the USS Chancellorsville - conducted the "routine" transit yesterday "through waters where high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law". It said they "transited through a corridor in the strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state... The US military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows".

Taiwan's Defence Ministry confirmed that a pair of warships sailed from north to south through the channel. "During their southward journey through the Taiwan Strait, the military is fully monitoring relevant movements in our surrounding sea and airspace, and the situation is normal."

The Seventh Fleet is based in Japan and is a core part of Washington's navy presence in the Pacific.

The US and Western allies have increased "freedom of navigation" crossings by naval vessels of both the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea to reinforce the concept that those seas are international waterways, sparking anger from Beijing.

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said it detected 23 Chinese aircraft and eight Chinese ships operating around the island yesterday, as Beijing continued its military activities near Taiwan. They included seven Chinese aircraft that crossed the Taiwan Strait's median line, which normally acts as an unofficial barrier between the two sides.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS