‘Absurd’: Taipei rejects Beijing’s sovereign claims over Taiwan Strait
- Taiwan says it supports US freedom of navigation operations in the area
- Comments in response to mainland China’s claim that it has jurisdiction over the waters
In Taipei on Tuesday, Taiwanese foreign ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou said it was absurd for Beijing to claim that the waterway separating the two sides of the Taiwan Strait was not international waters but the exclusive economic zone of the Chinese mainland.
“The Taiwan Strait is an international waterway, which is outside of our territorial waters, and is fit for the principle of freedom of navigation in the open sea,” Ou said, adding the island respected any movements of foreign vessels in the Taiwan Strait that abided by international law, including innocent passage.
“We perfectly understand and support the freedom of navigation missions by the United States that help promote peace and stability in the region.”
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Ou’s comments came a day after the mainland’s foreign ministry said Beijing had sovereign and administrative rights to the Taiwan Strait, denying US claims that the channel consisted of international waters.