China condemns US warship sailing in Taiwan Strait

BEIJING (Archyde.com) – China’s military on Wednesday condemned the United States after another U.S. warship sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait, saying such operations “deliberately” harm peace and stability. The US Navy said the guided-missile destroyer Samson made “normal transit through the Taiwan Strait” on Tuesday, in contravention of international law. The United States conducts such sailings about once a month, much to the chagrin of China, which sees the operations as signs of support for Taiwan, a democratically governed island that Beijing considers Chinese territory. The People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Region Command said its forces spotted the ship and warned it. “The United States repeatedly engages in such provocative actions, which send false signals to the ‘Taiwan independence’ forces and deliberately undermine the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait,” it said in a statement. We strongly oppose that.” Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said the US ship had sailed north through the strait, and that the situation in the waterway was “as usual”. The spokesman for the US Seventh Fleet, Nicholas Lingo, confirmed in a statement that the US military flies planes, sails and operates anywhere permitted by international law. The United States, like most countries, does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but it is the most important international supporter and arms supplier to it, and a constant source of tension between Beijing and Washington.