China said on Saturday that its military kept an eye on Australian and Canadian warships as they navigated the Taiwan Strait, denouncing their presence as “causing trouble” in the delicate waterway.
Beijing claims sovereignty over the body of water separating the self-governing island from the Chinese mainland and sees Taiwan as part of its territory.
“The Australian destroyer ‘Brisbane’ and the Canadian frigate ‘Quebec’ crossed the Taiwan Strait on September 6, provoking and creating trouble,” stated Senior Colonel Shi Yi, spokeswoman for the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command.
In a statement, Shi said that the PLA “organized naval and air forces to monitor and supervise their entire transits, effectively responding and handling the situation.”
