TAIPEI (AFP): The US Navy said its guided-missile destroyer the USS Milius had sailed through the Taiwan Strait in a "freedom of navigation" operation carried out days after China staged massive war games around the island.
The warship "conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit" on Sunday (April 16), the Navy's 7th Fleet said in a statement, "through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law".
China views Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to bring the self-ruled island under its control one day.
Beijing launched three days of military exercises around Taiwan on April 8 in which it simulated targeted strikes and practised a blockade of the island.
The 7th Fleet shared images Monday on Twitter of crew looking out into the Taiwan Strait, one of the most crucial waterways in the world for international shipping.
"The ship transited through a corridor in the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal State," the Navy said, adding that the sail-through demonstrated the US's commitment to a free and open Asia-Pacific region.
"The United States military flies, sails, and operates anywhere international law allows."
Beijing's drills around the island were carried out in response to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's recent visit to the US, where she met with Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.
On the final day of the drills last week, the Milius sailed through waters claimed by Beijing in the disputed South China Sea.
Beijing termed that operation an illegal intrusion carried out "without the approval of the Chinese government".
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