US warship spotted in Taiwan Strait, Chinese PLA on ‘high alert’

Kathmandu: A warship of US navy has sailed through the Taiwan Strait just days after China ended the military drill around the island.

The warship, called Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Milius, conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit through waters, the US Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement on Monday, adding that the latest sailing demonstrates Washington’s commitment to a free and open Indo-pacific.

Chinese military has said it has tracked a US warship through the Taiwan Strait, terming Washington’s latest move as ‘hyped up’ transit.

Issuing a statement on Monday, Colonel Shi Yi, a Chinese military spokesman, said troops in the area ‘remain on a high level of alert at all times and will resolutely defend national sovereignty and security as well as regional peace and stability’.

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officially ended its three days of exercises around Taiwan last Monday. During the latest military drills, PLA simulated precision strikes and blockade of Taiwan.

PLA’s war games followed the meeting between Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen and US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

China claims Taiwan as its territory and has vowed to bring the island under its control one day. It also claims the entire Taiwan Strait as its territorial waters.