The Chinese military has announced that it maintains a high level of alert and is ready to face any challenges.
China's military said on Sunday it is monitoring US Navy vessels sailing through the Taiwan Strait, maintaining a high level of alert and standing ready to deal with any provocations.
The US Navy announced that the guided-missile cruisers USS Antietam and USS Chancellorsville were conducting a "routine transit through the Taiwan Strait" today, in accordance with international law.
These crossings are usually completed in 8 to 12 hours and are closely monitored by the Chinese military.
The two US Navy ships sailing in international waters in the Taiwan Strait are making the first such crossing today since tensions with China escalated over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei in early August.
China interpreted Pelosi's visit to Taiwan as an attempt by the US to interfere in its internal affairs.
In recent years, US warships, and sometimes ships from US allies such as Britain and Canada, have regularly sailed through the strait, angering Beijing.
China considers the island of about 23 million people, with its own autonomous government, a breakaway province destined to be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary. Taiwan has remained autonomous since the end of the Chinese Civil War (1949).
