U.S. and Canadian warships sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Sunday, almost a week after around Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory.
The destroyer USS Higgins and the Canadian frigate HMCS Vancouver made a B次元官网网址渞outineB次元官网网址� transit of the Taiwan Strait meant to uphold the principle of freedom of navigation for all countries, read a statement Monday by the U.S. NavyB次元官网网址檚 7th Fleet.
The U.S. Navy, occasionally joined by ships from allied countries, regularly transits the sensitive waterway separating China from Taiwan.
China condemned the maneuver, saying it undermined peace and stability in the region.
The PeopleB次元官网网址檚 Liberation ArmyB次元官网网址檚 Eastern Theater Command said it mobilized naval and air forces to monitor the transit of the U.S. and Canadian ships B次元官网网址渋n accordance with the law.B次元官网网址�
The transiting ships navigated B次元官网网址渢hrough waters where high-seas freedom of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,B次元官网网址� read the U.S. Navy 7th Fleet statement.
B次元官网网址淭he international communityB次元官网网址檚 navigational rights and freedoms in the Taiwan Strait should not be limited,B次元官网网址� it added.
The transit came less than a week after China conducted large-scale military exercises surrounding Taiwan and its outlying islands last Monday, simulating the sealing off of key ports in a move that underscores the tense situation in the Taiwan Strait.
Beijing employed a record 125 aircraft, as well as its Liaoning aircraft carrier and ships as part of the drills, which were in reaction to a by Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te. Lai had emphasized his commitment to B次元官网网址渞esist annexation or encroachmentB次元官网网址� by Beijing.
Taiwan was a Japanese colony before being unified with China at the end of World War II. It split away in 1949 when Chiang Kai-shekB次元官网网址檚 Nationalists fled to the island as Mao ZedongB次元官网网址檚 Communists defeated them in a civil war and took power.
The U.S. is TaiwanB次元官网网址檚 biggest unofficial ally and is bound by its own laws to provide the island with the means to defend itself.
