US Warship Passage In Taiwan Strait Triggers China's Combat Drills - Chinese Military

(@FahadShabbir)

US Warship Passage in Taiwan Strait Triggers China's Combat Drills - Chinese Military

Responding to the passage of a United States' guided missile destroyer through the Taiwan Strait, China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) began patrols and combat exercises near Taiwan this week, a spokesman for the military, Army Senior Colonel Shi Yi, said on Saturday

BEIJING (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2021) Responding to the passage of a United States' guided missile destroyer through the Taiwan Strait, China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) began patrols and combat exercises near Taiwan this week, a spokesman for the military, Army Senior Colonel Shi Yi, said on Saturday.

"On September 17, the People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theater Command dispatched naval and air forces, including combat vessels, early warning aircraft and bombers to conduct joint patrols and combat exercises in the waters and airspace southwest of Taiwan Island," Shi, PLA's Eastern Theater Command spokesman, said in a statement, posted on WeChat.

As follows from the statement, the military maneuvers are aimed at increasing the coherence and effectiveness of the joint military operations of the PLA forces southwest and southeast of Taiwan amid constant provocations by the United States and forces in Taipei, advocating the independence of the island.

"The United States is constantly committing such provocative actions, this fully demonstrates that the United States is the country that violates peace in the Taiwan Strait, creating security risks," Shi added.

The situation in the region is often complicated by the passage of US warships, which, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, violates international law and undermines China's sovereignty and security. In July, the PLA announced that the American guided missile destroyer Benfold had invaded the PRC's territorial waters in the South China Sea. The US Navy has denied the accusations of the PRC. The US explained that the destroyer carried out an operation to ensure freedom of navigation in accordance with international law.