US warship sails through Taiwan Strait, angers China

As part of what the US military calls routine activity, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer Chung-Hoon sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Thursday – but has drawn the ire of China. In recent years, US warships, and on occasion those from allied nations, have sailed through the strait, prompting criticism from Beijing.

In a statement, the US military said the transit represented the US commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific”. But Liu Pengyu, spokesman for China’s embassy in Washington, said the voyage was to “flex muscles” and urged the US to “immediately stop … escalating tensions and undermining peace and stability.”

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen visited a military base on Friday to observe drills while China protested the US ship passage. “The continuous activities of the People’s Liberation Army [around Taiwan] are not helpful to … the peace and stability of the region,” Tsai said.

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Tensions in the narrow Taiwan Strait increased last year. In response to former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit in August, China carried out its biggest-ever military exercises around the island.

China claims Taiwan as a part of its territory and has never ruled out using force to bring the island under its control. Self-ruled Taiwan sees itself as distinct from the mainland and vows to defend itself if attacked.

Tensions between the two have caused the US to walk a diplomatic tightrope. It abides by the “One China” policy – a key cornerstone of Sino-US relations which recognises only one Chinese government. The US has formal diplomatic relations with China and not Taiwan. But at the same time, it also maintains a “robust unofficial” relationship with Taiwan. It is bound by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.