An American warship transits the Taiwan Strait after Chinese assault drills

WASHINGTON, Aug. 27 (Reuters) – A U.S. warship and a U.S. Coast Guard cutter sailed across the Taiwan Strait on Friday, the latest in what Washington calls routine operations in through the sensitive waterway that separates Taiwan from China, which claims self-governing island. .

The passage comes amid rising military tensions over the past two years between Taiwan and China, and follows Chinese assault exercises last week, with warships and fighter jets operating in the south. -west and southeast of the island.

The Kidd, an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, accompanied by Coast Guard munro cutter, transited “through international waters in accordance with international law,” the U.S. Navy said in a statement.

“The lawful transit of ships across the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. The U.S. military flies, sails, and operates where international law allows,” he said.

The U.S. Navy has been doing these operations more or less every month, infuriating China, which sees Taiwan as its territory and has never given up on using force to put the democratic island under its control.

China on Saturday called the move “provocative,” saying the Eastern Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command organized troops to monitor, monitor and protect the course of U.S. ships’ operations.

“The United States has often carried out similar provocative acts, of a very bad nature, fully showing that it is the main destroyer of peace and stability and the biggest cause of security risks in the Taiwan Strait. We strongly oppose and strongly condemn this. “Defense Ministry spokesman Tan Kefei said in a statement.

“Taiwan is an inseparable part of China. The Taiwan issue is an internal matter of China and does not allow external interference. We call on the United States to recognize the situation, stop provoking and comply with the principle One China and the provisions of the three Sino-US countries. joint communiqués “.

The United States, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but is its largest international sponsor and major arms dealer on the island.

Taiwan and the United States signed an agreement in March to establish a Coast Guard working group to coordinate policy, following the passage of China’s law that allows its coastguards to fire at foreign ships. Read more

Friday was not the first time a U.S. Coast Guard cutter has crossed the Taiwan Strait.

But it was a reminder that it now keeps ships in the region and “participates in joint training and police diplomacy to help strengthen the capacity of partner nations in the face of Chinese intrusions,” said Greg Poling, a maritime security expert from Washington Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The state-controlled media in China have taken advantage of the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in recent weeks to portray U.S. support for Taiwan and regional allies as fickle.

But the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has been quick to dismiss any comparison between Afghanistan and the U.S. commitment to the Indo-Pacific.

Vice President Kamala Harris accused China of “school harassment and excessive maritime claims” during trips to Vietnam and Singapore this week, the latest in a series of visits by top US officials to the Indo-Pacific with the goal of consolidating the United States’ commitment to the region.

Report by Michael Martina and Idrees Ali; Additional reports from Emily Chow in Shanghai; Edited by Jonathan Oatis and William Mallard

Our standards: the principles of trust of Thomson Reuters.