China condemns passage of Canadian, Australian warships through Taiwan Strait

(MENAFN) The Chinese military has criticized Canadian and Australian warships for transiting the Taiwan Strait, labeling the move a provocation.

China views Taiwan—self-governed since 1949 after nationalist forces retreated following the Chinese Civil War—as part of its territory under the One-China principle, and claims the strait as its own. While Canada and Australia do not formally recognize Taiwan as independent, several countries, including the US, UK, France, Canada, and Australia, regard the strait as an international waterway and conduct regular transits.

The Canadian frigate HMCS Ville de Quebec and the Australian destroyer HMAS Brisbane passed through the strait early Saturday, following Beijing’s accusations that both nations were increasing tensions with military exercises in the South China Sea. China said its forces tracked and warned the ships, calling their actions “trouble-making and provocation.”

“The actions of the Canadians and Australians send the wrong signals and increase security risks,” the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command stated on Sunday.

An Australian Defense Department spokesperson described the transit as “routine,” noting the Brisbane traveled alongside the Canadian ship from September 6 to 7. “Australian vessels and aircraft will continue to exercise freedom of navigation and uphold international law, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” the spokesperson added.

Canada’s Joint Operations Command declined to comment on the passage, stating that the Ville de Quebec was deployed on Operation Horizon, the nation’s Indo-Pacific mission aimed at supporting “peace and stability.”

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