Two U.S. Navy Warships Sail Through The Taiwan Strait

The guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem, pictured, sailed through the Taiwan Strait with USS William P Lawrence on Sunday. Photograph: HANDOUT/Reuters

Reuters: Two U.S. Navy warships sail through strategic Taiwan Strait

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military said it sent two Navy warships through the Taiwan Strait on Sunday as the Pentagon increases the frequency of movement through the strategic waterway despite opposition from China.

The voyage risks further raising tensions with China but will likely be viewed by self-ruled Taiwan as a sign of support from the Trump administration amid growing friction between Taipei and Beijing.

Taiwan is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the U.S.-China relationship, which also include a trade war, U.S. sanctions and China’s increasingly muscular military posture in the South China Sea, where the United States also conducts freedom-of-navigation patrols.

The two destroyers were identified as the William P. Lawrence and Stethem. The 112-mile-wide (180-km) Taiwan Strait separates Taiwan from China.

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Update: US Navy warships sail once again through Taiwan Strait (Taiwan News)

WNU Editor: Expect a reaction from China very soon.