Japanese media reported that a Japanese warship has passed through the Taiwan Strait between Taiwan and mainland China for the first time.
The Sazanami, a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer, passed through the strait from north to south on Wednesday while en route to participate in a multilateral exercise in the South China Sea, government sources said.
Naval ships from Australia and New Zealand taking part in the exercise passed through the waterway alongside Japanese vessels.
The incident comes less than two weeks after Germany sent two warships through the narrow waters, which it said was to demonstrate freedom of navigation – a move that drew criticism from China.
The Japanese and Taiwanese defense ministries have not commented on this information.
Chinese state newspaper Global Times, citing an unnamed source, said the Chinese military “has been conducting surveillance and monitoring across the country.” [the vessels’] the whole course and control the situation”.
Both the United States and Taiwan say the 180-km (112-mile) strait – a vital shipping and trade route through which about half of the global container fleet passes – is part of international waters and open to all naval vessels.
But China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, also claims sovereignty and jurisdiction over the strait.
Bec Strating, professor of international relations at La Trobe University in Australia, said Japan’s reported transit was “part of a larger pattern of naval presence by countries in and outside Asia that are concerned about China’s maritime claims”.
“Japan in particular is having to deal with China’s ‘grey zone’ tactics in the East China Sea,” she told AFP.
Analysts say gray zone warfare tactics aim to weaken an enemy over a long period of time.
Washington and its allies are sailing through the Taiwan Strait more frequently to bolster its status as an international waterway.
China’s military accused Germany of posing a security risk by passing through the strait on September 13, but Berlin said it was acting in accordance with international standards. It was the first time in 22 years that a German naval vessel had passed through the strait.
Besides Germany and Japan, Canada, Australia and Britain have also sent warships through the strait in recent years.
Tokyo has reported increased Chinese military activity near Japan and around Taiwan in recent months.
Last week, Beijing sent an aircraft carrier for the first time between two Japanese islands near Taiwan. In August, a Chinese spy plane flies into Japanese airspacecausing Tokyo to condemn the invasion as “completely unacceptable” and a “serious violation of sovereignty”.
Last week, the leaders of the Quad grouping — Japan, Australia, India and the United States — announced that they would expand cooperation on maritime security to counter China’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea.
