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 91裸聊视频渞outine91裸聊视频� 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. Navy91裸聊视频檚 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 People91裸聊视频檚 Liberation Army91裸聊视频檚 Eastern Theater Command said it mobilized naval and air forces to monitor the transit of the U.S. and Canadian ships 91裸聊视频渋n accordance with the law.91裸聊视频�
The transiting ships navigated 91裸聊视频渢hrough waters where high-seas freedom of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,91裸聊视频� read the U.S. Navy 7th Fleet statement.
91裸聊视频淭he international community91裸聊视频檚 navigational rights and freedoms in the Taiwan Strait should not be limited,91裸聊视频� 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 91裸聊视频渞esist annexation or encroachment91裸聊视频� 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-shek91裸聊视频檚 Nationalists fled to the island as Mao Zedong91裸聊视频檚 Communists defeated them in a civil war and took power.
The U.S. is Taiwan91裸聊视频檚 biggest unofficial ally and is bound by its own laws to provide the island with the means to defend itself.
