On Monday, the U.S. military released video of an “unsafe” maneuver in the Taiwan Strait. A Chinese ship could have caused a collision with an American destroyer. But China isn’t backing down after the incident. Instead, it suggests that America and its allies created the danger. China’s defense minister says the United States and allies should focus on taking “good care of your own territorial airspace and waters.”
The naval traffic incident occurred Saturday. The American destroyer USS Chung-Hoon and the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal were conducting a “freedom of navigation” passage. They sailed through the strait between Taiwan and mainland China.
During Saturday’s transit, the Chinese guided-missile destroyer overtook Chung-Hoon on its port side. Then it veered across Chung-Hoon’s bow at a distance of some 150 yards, according to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. The American destroyer held its course. But it reduced speed to 10 knots “to avoid a collision,” the military says.
Video shows the Chinese ship as it cuts across the course of the American vessel. It then straightens out to sail in a parallel direction.
U.S. personnel say the Chinese ship’s actions broke maritime rules of safe passage in international water.
The Chinese ship did not attempt a similar maneuver on the Canadian frigate. Montreal was sailing behind the American destroyer.
China claims the democratic self-governing island of Taiwan as part of its own territory. It maintains the strait is part of its exclusive economic zone. In other words, the country wants everyone else to stay out of the strait.
But the United States and its allies regularly sail through and fly over the passage. It’s a way to emphasize their belief that the waters are international.
The “transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the combined U.S.-Canadian commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the Indo-Pacific Command says. “The U.S. military flies, sails, and operates safely and responsibly anywhere international law allows.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin defends his country’s maneuver. “China’s military actions are completely justified, lawful, safe, and professional,” he told reporters in Beijing. “It is the U.S. that should deeply reflect upon itself and correct the wrongdoings.”
Last month, the United States accused China of performing an “unnecessarily aggressive maneuver” in the air. U.S. officials say a Chinese J-16 fighter jet flew directly in front of the nose of a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance aircraft. That took place over the South China Sea.
The close calls raise concerns of a possible accident. Such an event could lead to an escalation between the two countries’ militaries. Tensions in the region are already high.
Chinese Defense Minister General Li Shangfu suggests that the United States and its allies created the danger with their patrols. He believes they are intent on provoking China.
“The best way is for the countries, especially the naval vessels and fighter jets of countries, not to do closing actions around other countries’ territories,” he says. “What’s the point of going [into the Taiwan Strait]? In China, we always say, ‘Mind your own business.’”
(The USS Chung-Hoon observes a Chinese navy ship conduct what it called an “unsafe” maneuver in the Taiwan Strait on June 3, 2023. Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Andre T. Richard/U.S. Navy via AP)
