China on alert as US warships pass through Taiwan Strait

Beijing has denounced the first US warships to cross since Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, but Washington promises to continue sending military vessels to defend freedom of navigation.

The two US navy cruisers sailed through the Taiwan Strait in the first such transit since China’s military drills around the island. Picture: US Navy

Chinese troops were put on high alert on Sunday as two United States navy cruisers armed with guided missiles sailed through the Taiwan Strait.

The USS Antietam and the USS Chancellorsville conducted a “routine Taiwan Strait transit” through the waters, where “freedoms of navigation and oversight apply in accordance with international law”, the US 7th fleet said.

Eight Chinese warships and 23 Chinese military planes, up from five naval vessels and 21 aircraft the day before, were seen in the area as the US navy ships were due to pass through the strait, Taiwan’s defence ministry said.

It is the first passage through the strait by US warships since Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan triggered an angry response from Beijing, resulting in large-scale military exercises in effect blockading the self-governed island this month.

The USS Chancellorsville transits the Taiwan Strait during routine, the first such transit since China staged unprecedented military drills around the island. Picture: US Navy

Shi Yi, a spokesman for the Eastern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), said the Chinese military would be monitoring and guarding the two Ticonderoga-class cruisers and had forces on standby “ready to thwart any provocation”.

In the past few weeks PLA ships and aircraft have been regularly crossing over the median line of the strait, which was previously considered an unofficial border separating the mainland and the island, after Ms Pelosi became the highest-ranking American politician to visit Taipei for 25 years.

The Chinese government, which wants to reunify Taiwan with its territory, lambasted the Speaker of the House of Representatives for interfering in China’s internal politics and encouraging those seeking independence for the island, which the US has vowed to defend in the event of an invasion by China.

China has since sanctioned Ms Pelosi, suspended high-level talks with the US and sent dozens of warships, military jets and drones to the strait and nearby waters. It has also fired ballistic missiles into the sea east of Taiwan.

Washington has accused Beijing of attempting to change the status quo in the strait after China declared in June its “sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction” over one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

The US has promised to continue sending military ships to defend freedom of navigation and its navy published photographs of the two cruisers, armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles, torpedoes and antiship missiles, on their latest transit.

Hu Xijin, a Chinese commentator, denounced the “new provocation” but argued that the operation was not a deterrent to China. “The US attempts to assure Taiwan’s authorities and regional allies that it would not retreat under military pressure from the mainland,” Mr Hu said, adding: “US warships have made nearly 100 trips through the strait since 2012 … but the effect of this kind of performance is diminishing.

“The Taiwan issue is a long-time struggle between China and the US and the only language the US understands and is willing to respect is strength.”

Undeterred by Chinese threats, three more US political delegations have landed on the island since Ms Pelosi’s trip. The most recent was by Marsha Blackburn, a Republican senator, who arrived in Taiwan on Thursday.

– The Times