US warship transit of Taiwan Strait misleads independence forces, says Beijing

Name: US destroyer passes through Taiwan Strait, China urges ‘no interference by external forces’
Uploaded: 2022-05-11T05:55:31.000Z
Duration: 32 s
Description: US destroyer passes through Taiwan Strait, China urges ‘no interference by external forces’

US Navy 7th fleet said the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit on Tuesday

Taiwan’s defence ministry says a single Chinese WZ-10 attack helicopter briefly crossed the strait’s unofficial median line

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The guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday. Photo: US Navy

Teddy Ng

Published: 1:55pm, 11 May 2022Updated: 5:51pm, 11 May 2022

China’s military said it had warned a US warship that had sailed through the Taiwan Strait and accused Washington of provoking tensions in the latest confrontation between the two nations over the self-ruled island.

The US Navy 7th fleet said the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit on Tuesday through international waters “in accordance with international law”.

“The ship transited through a corridor in the strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state. Port Royal’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” it said in a statement.

“The United States military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows.”

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US destroyer passes through Taiwan Strait, China urges ‘no interference by external forces’

The People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command hit back, saying it was a move to provoke tensions across the Taiwan Strait.