A US destroyer and a Canadian frigate conducted a “routine” transit of the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday — their second joint passage in two months — to demonstrate a commitment “to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the 7th Fleet of the US Pacific Command said yesterday.
In a statement, the US 7th Fleet said that the “unremarkable [and] unprovocative” transit by the USS Rafael Peralta, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, and the Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigate the HMCS Ottawa was made “through waters where high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law.”
The transit was made through “a corridor in the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state” to “demonstrate the commitment of the United States and our allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the US 7th Fleet said.
Photo from the HMCS Ottawa’s Facebook page
“Cooperation like this represents the centerpiece of our approach to a secure and prosperous region where aircraft and ships of all nations may fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows,” it said.
The Ministry of National Defense later confirmed the transit, saying in a statement that the military was on top of the situation as one US destroyer and one Canadian frigate sailed northward in the Taiwan Strait, and it did not see any irregularities.
China yesterday said its troops were “on constant high alert” after the transit.
“Troops in the theater remain on constant high alert, and will resolutely protect national sovereignty and security as well as regional peace and stability,” Senior Colonel Shi Yi (施毅), a spokesman for China’s Eastern Theater Command, said in a statement.
Shi slammed the latest transit as “public hype” and said its naval and air forces had “trailed their entire course.”
US warships have been making routine, almost monthly passages through the Taiwan Strait for more than two years, occasionally accompanied by vessels from allied nations such as Canada.
The last voyage made by US and Canadian warships was on Sept. 9 by the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ottawa.
Taipei has welcomed such transits, describing them as beneficial to promoting regional peace and stability.
Additional reporting by AFP
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
Pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai’s (黎智英) fraud conviction and prison sentence were yesterday overturned by a Hong Kong court, in a surprise legal decision that comes soon after Lai was jailed for 20 years on a separate national security charge. Judges Jeremy Poon (潘兆初), Anthea Pang (彭寶琴) and Derek Pang (彭偉昌) said in the judgement that they allowed the appeal from Lai, and another defendant in the case, to proceed, as a lower court judge had “erred.” “The Court of Appeal gave them leave to appeal against their conviction, allowed their appeals, quashed the convictions and set aside the sentences,” the judges
RSS