The US Alreigh Burke-class missile destroyer USS Dewey and the Canadian frigate HMCS Winnipeg crossed that sea lane on Thursday and Friday.
The Eastern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army on Sunday condemned the US and Canada for sending a pair of warships through the Taiwan Strait this week, calling this step a threat to stability in the region.
These are the US Alreigh Burke-class missile destroyer USS Dewey and the Canadian frigate HMCS Winnipeg, which crossed that seaway on Thursday and Friday, Reuters reports .
“The US and Canada conspired to provoke and agitate problems , seriously endangering the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan is part of Chinese territory. The theater forces always maintain a high level of alert and counteract with determination all threats and provocations, “the agency cites a statement from the Asian country in this regard.
Meanwhile, the US military assured that the passage of these warships ” demonstrates the commitment ” of Washington and its allies to “a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
- In early October, China sent a record number of about 150 fighter jets to the area in four days that flew over Taiwan’s air defense identification zone.
- The strait in question is part of the South China Sea that is the subject of overlapping maritime and territorial claims by various nations including China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
- Washington frequently sends units of its fleet to the region, causing discontent on the part of Beijing, which regards Taiwan as an integral part of its territory.
- Beijing, for its part, stresses that the disputed area is “undisputed Chinese territory”, in addition to suggesting that Washington’s activity is “the fundamental reason affecting stability” in the South China Sea.