Iran Press/ Asia: The transit of US and Canadian warships through the Taiwan Strait was carried out following weekend remarks from President Joe Biden that the US would defend Taiwan against China.
A US Navy ship, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins, conducted a “routine Taiwan Strait transit” on Tuesday, US Navy spokesperson Lt. Mark Langford said in a statement.
The US ship conducted the transit “in cooperation with Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver,” Langford said.
The two ships “transited through a corridor in the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal State,” Lt. Langford said. The transit “demonstrates the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Lt. Langford added.
Tuesday’s transit marked the second time in just over three weeks that a US Navy warship had made the voyage. The guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam and USS Antietam and USS Chancellorsville did so on August 28.
Since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in early August, the US has witnessed a dramatic increase in the number of Chinese military ships and submarines around Taiwan, a US defense official told CNN.
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Though the US called the transit “routine,” it comes after Biden added fuel to tensions between Washington and Beijing over Taiwan.
The strait is a 110-mile (180-kilometer) stretch of water that separates Taiwan from mainland China.
Beijing claims sovereignty over Taiwan – an island of 23 million people – despite China’s ruling Communist Party never having controlled it. Beijing also claims sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the waters of the Taiwan Strait under Chinese law and its interpretation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The US Navy, however, says most of the strait is in international waters, citing a UNCLOS definition of territorial waters as extending 12 nautical miles (22.2 kilometers) from a country’s coastline. The US regularly sends its warships through the strait, making dozens of such transits in recent years.
Canadian Ministry of Defence Head of Media Relations Daniel Le Bouthillier confirmed Canada participated in the transit on Tuesday.
“Following port visits in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Manila, Philippines, HMCS Vancouver sailed through the Taiwan Strait along with the USS Higgins, as this was the most direct navigational route. This sail was done in full accordance with international law, including high seas navigation rights as outlined in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea,” Le Bouthillier told CNN.
Chinese aircraft and ships were present through “various parts” of the US and Canadian ships’ transit, US military confirmed, but “all interactions with foreign military forces during the transit were consistent with international standards and practices and did not impact the operation,” Langford said.
Beijing swiftly condemned Biden’s weekend comments and repeated its warning that China reserves the “option to take all necessary measures” to defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
US and Canadian warships last went through the strait at the same time 11 months ago, when the destroyer USS Dewey and frigate HMCS Winnipeg made the trip.
After that transit, Senior Col. Shi Yi, spokesperson for the People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command, said in a written statement that “the US and Canada made provocations with odious nature and stirred up troubles in cahoots, which seriously jeopardized the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”
hina has repeatedly warned the US against formal ties with Chinese Taipei, which is the sovereign territory of China.
Under the "One China" policy, nearly all countries across the globe recognize Beijing's sovereignty over Chinese Taipei, including the US, which has no formal diplomatic ties with the territory but continues to support its anti-China stance and supply it with massive amounts of armaments.
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