First time since Taiwan’s presidential election
China’s eastern theater “monitors and monitors all processes”
The Chinese military immediately reacted to the US Navy’s Aegis destroyer ‘John Finn’ passing through the Taiwan Strait on the 24th during the US Congressional delegation’s visit to Taiwan, calling it ‘an action that destroys peace and stability in the region’.
Shi Yi (施毅), spokesperson for China’s Eastern Theater, which has jurisdiction over the Taiwan Strait (the Korean military rank is between colonel and brigadier general, closer to colonel) said in a statement on this day, “The U.S. destroyer John Finn passed through the Taiwan Strait, influencing public opinion.” He said, “The Eastern Theater mobilized maritime and air forces to monitor and track the incident, and responded in accordance with the law.”
“Recently, the U.S. military has been frequently provoking and maliciously harming regional peace and stability,” he said. “Each unit in the Eastern Theater will always maintain a high level of alert and resolutely protect the national sovereignty and security and regional peace and stability.” emphasized.
Prior to this, the U.S. Navy said in a statement that day, “The passage of the ‘John Finn’ through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to guaranteeing the freedom of navigation of all countries in principle.”
He then emphasized, “No member of the international community should be threatened or forced to give up their rights and freedoms.”
This is the first time that a U.S. warship has passed through the Taiwan Strait since Taiwan’s presidential election on the 13th.
In addition, this operation attracted attention because it was carried out while the U.S. Congressional delegation was visiting Taiwan.
Republican Representative Mario Diaz-Ballat and Democratic Representative Ami Vera, co-chairs of the US House of Representatives’ Taiwan Caucus, are visiting Taiwan. They visited Taiwan after Taiwan’s presidential election to express their support for the Democratic Progressive Party government.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense also announced in a press release on the 24th, “A U.S. warship passed through the Taiwan Strait today. During the passage through the strait, the South Korean military monitored trends in the surrounding sea and airspace, and the situation remained normal.” .
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.