TAIPEI: A US warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Thursday, the American navy said, in the first such voyage since the inauguration of President Joe Biden.
The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer conducted a routine transit through the waterway separating the Chinese mainland and Taiwan, the US Seventh Fleet said in a statement.
US warships periodically conduct navigation exercises in the strait, often triggering angry responses from China which claims self-ruled, democratic Taiwan as part of its territory.
Beijing views any ships passing through the strait as essentially a breach of its sovereignty – while the US and many other nations view the route as international waters open to all.
The voyage by the USS John S. McCain “demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the Seventh Fleet statement said.
“The United States military will continue to fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows.”
Taiwan’s defense ministry confirmed the journey without identifying the vessel.
The transit comes after two US reconnaissance planes and one jet tanker flew near Taiwan’s airspace on Monday, according to the ministry, which did not disclose their routes.
China has stepped up military, diplomatic and economic pressure on Taiwan since the election of President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016, as she refuses to acknowledge Beijing’s stance that the island is part of “one China.”
Last year Chinese military jets made a record 380 incursions into Taiwan’s defense zone, with some analysts warning that tensions between the two sides were at their highest since the mid-1990s.
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First US warship transits Taiwan Strait since Biden inauguration
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First US warship transits Taiwan Strait since Biden inauguration
- US warships periodically conduct navigation exercises in the strait, often triggering angry responses from China
- Voyage by the USS John S. McCain ‘demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific’
Canada’s Carney hails ‘strategic partnership’ in talks with Xi
BEIJING: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping began talks in Beijing on Friday, marking the first meeting between the countries’ leaders in China’s capital in eight years.
Carney lauded a “new strategic partnership” between the two countries after he arrived for the talks at the Great Hall of the People.
Following President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariffs on Canadian products, Carney has sought to reduce his country’s economic reliance on its main market, the United States.
Carney told Xi that “together, we can build the best of what this relationship has been in the past to create a new one.”
“Agriculture, energy, finance, that’s where we can make the most immediate progress,” he added.
Xi welcomed Carney and his delegation, saying that China-Canada relations were at a turning point after their last meeting at an APAC summit in October.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China-Canada relations toward improvement,” Xi told Carney.
“The healthy and stable development of China-Canada relations serves the common interests of our two countries,” he said, adding he was “glad” to see discussions over the last few months to restore cooperation.
Officials from both countries have been in talks to lower tariffs, but an agreement has yet to be reached.
Carney, who on Thursday met with Premier Li Qiang, is also scheduled to hold talks with business leaders to discuss trade.
Carney lauded a “new strategic partnership” between the two countries after he arrived for the talks at the Great Hall of the People.
Following President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariffs on Canadian products, Carney has sought to reduce his country’s economic reliance on its main market, the United States.
Carney told Xi that “together, we can build the best of what this relationship has been in the past to create a new one.”
“Agriculture, energy, finance, that’s where we can make the most immediate progress,” he added.
Xi welcomed Carney and his delegation, saying that China-Canada relations were at a turning point after their last meeting at an APAC summit in October.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China-Canada relations toward improvement,” Xi told Carney.
“The healthy and stable development of China-Canada relations serves the common interests of our two countries,” he said, adding he was “glad” to see discussions over the last few months to restore cooperation.
Officials from both countries have been in talks to lower tariffs, but an agreement has yet to be reached.
Carney, who on Thursday met with Premier Li Qiang, is also scheduled to hold talks with business leaders to discuss trade.
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