China tracks US warship through Taiwan Strait, maintains 'high alert'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
17 Apr 2023 07:53

Another day, another provocation by the US against China in its own backyard.

USS Milius (DDG 69) (Twitter/ US 7th Fleet)

In yet another deliberate provocation, the United States sent a naval cruiser through the Taiwan Strait under the pretext of "freedom of navigation."

The USS Milius guided-missile destroyer "conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit" on Sunday, the US Navy said, in the first US operation in the waters separating Taiwan from mainland China since January.

The US Navy said the Milius had sailed "through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law."

Images showing crew members gazing out into the strait, one of the most important waterways in the world for international shipping, were posted Monday on Twitter by the 7th Fleet.

USS Milius (DDG 69) conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit April 16 (local time) through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law.

Click here to read more:https://t.co/kVeETF1HUi pic.twitter.com/IzEOPA1T0Y
— 7th Fleet (@US7thFleet) April 17, 2023

"The ship transited through a corridor in the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal State," the Navy said, adding that the sail-through demonstrated the US commitment to a free and open Asia-Pacific region.

"The United States military flies, sails, and operates anywhere international law allows."

Simultaneously, China confirmed it had tracked an American warship that sailed through the Taiwan Strait, adding the United States had "publicly hyped up" its transit.

Colonel Shi Yi, a PLA spokesperson, said, "Theatre troops remain on a high level of alert at all times and will resolutely defend national sovereignty and security as well as regional peace and stability."

Less than a week ago, China strongly decried the "illegal" intrusion of a US warship into waters it claims in the South China Sea shortly after the US Navy said its guided-missile destroyer the USS Milius had "sailed through the area."

On April 8, Beijing began three days of military drills in the vicinity of Taiwan, following a meeting between the island's leader and the US House speaker.

Tensions in the Taiwan Strait reached an all-time high in August 2022, following a visit to Taiwan by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. However, the US continues to irk China by sailing its warships through the Taiwan Strait and arming Taiwan with billions of dollars worth of weapons.