China vexed by US Navy ships sailing

China yesterday expressed concern after two US Navy ships sailed through the Taiwan Strait, the third such operation this year.

"China will pay close attention to and stay informed of US warships sailing through the Taiwan Strait from beginning to end, and has already expressed its concern to the US," said Chinese foreign ministry official spokesman Geng Shuang at a regular press briefing in Beijing yesterday.

He urged the US to respect the "One China Principle" to avoid "impairing China-US relations and the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait."

China still sees Taiwan as part of its territory to be reunified, despite the two sides being ruled separately since the end of a civil war on the mainland in 1949.

That means Beijing views any ships passing through the straits as essentially a breach of its sovreignty -- while the US and many other nations view the route as international waters open to all.

At a monthly press briefing by China's defence ministry yesterday, official spokesman Ren Guoqiang said that the People's Liberation Army would maintain a "high degree of alert".

Lieutenant Rachel McMarr, a spokeswoman for the US Pacific Fleet, said the destroyer USS Stockdale and oiler USNS Pecos sailed through the strait in a "routine" transit on Wednesday.