Wednesday 21 September 2022 07:47 AM US destroyer and Canadian frigate sail through the Taiwan Strait in show of ... trends now
A US destroyer and a Canadian frigate sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday in the latest joint operation aimed at reinforcing the route's status as an international waterway.
The United States has long used 'freedom of navigation' passages through the Taiwan Strait to push back against Chinese claims and Western allies have increasingly joined these operations.
The USS Higgins, along with the Royal Canadian Navy's Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver 'conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit... in accordance with international law', the US Navy's Seventh Fleet said.
'The ship transited through a corridor in the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal State,' they continued, though Beijing's official position is that the Strait is part of their territory.
It comes after President Joe Biden was asked in an interview whether US troops would defend Taiwan and replied 'yes', if it were 'an unprecedented attack.'
A photo of the Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver sailing on the Taiwan Strait in an apparent show of force against China
The U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins, pictured here, accompanied the Canadian frigate
President Joe Biden was asked in an interview whether US troops would defend Taiwan and replied 'yes', if it were 'an unprecedented attack,' drawing backlash from Beijing
Foreign ministry spokesman Mao Ning, pictured, said: 'The US remarks... severely violate the important commitment the US made not to support Taiwan independence'
The response drew backlash from Beijing, and a spokesperson said Biden's remarks 'severely violate the important commitment the US made not to support Taiwan independence.'
British, Canadian, French and Australian warships have made passages through the Taiwan Strait in recent years, sparking protests from Beijing.
They also frequently ply the South China Sea, another vital shipping area that Beijing insists comes under its domain despite a 2016 Hague ruling that dismissed its claims as well as rival
