China Condemns US After Two Naval Vessels Transit Taiwan Strait for First Time in Trump’s Second Term

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China has expressed outrage after two US naval vessels transited through the Taiwan Strait.

Some shit you should know before you read: For decades, China has reacted angrily whenever US naval vessels pass through the Taiwan Strait, a 111-mile-wide waterway that separates mainland China from Taiwan. While the strait is considered international waters under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Beijing views it as part of its sovereign territory and sees foreign military transits as a direct challenge to its authority. Despite this, the US and its allies regularly conduct freedom US navigation operations in the strait to reaffirm that it remains open to all nations under international law. Each time the US Navy sails through, China condemns the move as a provocation, accusing the US of destabilizing the region.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) sails towards the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) while conducting routine underway operations. McCain is assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Markus Castaneda)

What’s going on now: For the first time in President Trump’s second term, two US naval ships transited the Taiwan Strait, prompting swift condemnation from China. The vessels, identified as the USS Ralph Johnson, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, and the USNS Bowditch, a survey ship, sailed through the waterway from February 10 to 12 in what the US Indo-Pacific Command described as a routine operation in international waters. The passage was not publicly announced in advance by the US military, a departure from previous practice, but was later confirmed by both the US Navy and Taiwan’s defense ministry, which monitored the transit.

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command has denounced the move as a provocation that increased regional security risks. PLA spokesperson Colonel Li Xi accused the US of sending “wrong signals” and interfering in China’s internal affairs. He said that Chinese forces would remain on high alert to safeguard their national sovereignty.

This all comes as the US and its allies conduct ongoing military exercises in the South China Sea, reinforcing their presence in a region where China has been expanding its territorial claims.