China firmly opposes any provocations in name of 'freedom of navigation' through Taiwan Straits

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In response to a media inquiry regarding claims made by the DPP authorities in the island of Taiwan that 46 PLA planes crossed the so-called median line in the Taiwan Straits in the past 24 hours and whether it has anything to do with the British and Japanese naval vessels that went through the Straits or with the visit of US congressmen to Taiwan recently, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun reiterated on Friday that the Taiwan question bears on China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"China respects countries' lawful right to navigation in relevant waters of the Taiwan Straits, but firmly opposes any country making provocations or threatening China's sovereignty and security in the name of freedom of navigation," Guo said. 

The PLA's Eastern Theater Command also issued a statement on Friday regarding the UK offshore patrol vessel HMS Spey's transit through the Taiwan Straits on Wednesday, slamming the UK for publicly hyping up the transit. 

The Eastern Theater Command deployed forces to monitor the entire transit, maintained a high level of alert, and responded effectively to the situation, Liu Runke, spokesperson for the PLA Eastern Theater Command Navy, said in the statement.

A British Navy spokesperson had previously said that the patrol vessel's passage was conducted in full accordance with international law, according to Reuters. 

Liu slammed the UK's claims as a distortion of legal principles and an attempt to mislead the public. Such actions are intentional provocations that stir up tension and undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits. Liu emphasized that the theater command troops remain on high alert at all times and will resolutely counter all threats or provocations.

The last time a British warship passed through the Taiwan Straits was in 2021, when the frigate HMS Richmond transited the Straits while sailing from Japan to Vietnam. HMS Richmond was part of the UK's Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier strike group but carried out the transit independently.

Zhuo Hua, an international affairs expert at the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at Beijing Foreign Studies University, told Global Times on Friday that HMS Spey has been operating in the Asia-Pacific for an extended period and lacks real combat capability. The ship's high-profile transit was aimed at increasing the UK's presence in the region and served as a political signal, the expert said. 

The UK's move was mainly an effort to curry favor with the US, Zhuo said. Facing uncertainties in its relations with the US, the UK is eager to reaffirm the value of the "special relationship," especially as recent trade deals have only partially alleviated transatlantic tensions. 

"The UK is stepping into what Washington sees as a sensitive region to maintain visibility and strengthen its bargaining power in political exchanges with the US," he said. "But this kind of behavior deliberately misinterprets international law and provocatively challenges China's sovereignty."

Meanwhile, Japanese media reported on Thursday that the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Takanami had also recently sailed through the Straits. The PLA reportedly monitored the entire operation. Japan previously sent warships through the Taiwan Straits in September 2024 and February, according to media reports. 

Since last year, Japan began publicly dispatching warships through the Taiwan Straits, military expert Zhang Junshe told Global Times on Friday. 

"In recent years, the US has conducted high-profile transits to show support for 'Taiwan independence' forces, and Japanese politicians have echoed this by claiming 'a Taiwan contingency is a Japan contingency.' Japan's actions are both a show of support for US strategy and a display of its own military ambition in the region," Zhang said. 

Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao ran a headline on Friday noting that a Japanese destroyer sailed through the Taiwan Straits shortly after a close encounter between Chinese and Japanese military aircraft over the Pacific. The Japanese Defense Ministry had previously claimed that Chinese J-15 fighter jets from the aircraft carrier Shandong came within 45 meters of a Japanese P-3C patrol aircraft on June 7 and 8, the report said.

Zhang noted that Japan is using the close encounter as a pretext to justify the destroyer's transit. "In reality, the close encounter was caused by Japan's surveillance and provocation against China's carrier group, prompting a necessary response from Chinese aircraft," he said, adding that Japan's intent was to demonstrate its presence and provoke China, while trying to avoid direct confrontation. 

Notably, the two most recent transits through the Taiwan Straits by Japanese warships were both disclosed only after the fact, through Japanese media citing unnamed sources. According to Zhang, this practice indicates that Japan does not dare to openly provoke China, instead choosing to hide behind the US to send provocative signals, while fearing possible countermeasures from the Chinese side. The Chinese public sees this cautious posture very clearly, he added.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Japan's recent actions evoke memories of its disgraceful militarist history in the modern era, Zhang noted. 

After Japan's surrender in WWII, its warships avoided the Taiwan Straits for a long time, steering clear of the sensitive area except in rare cases such as typhoon avoidance, Zhang said. "Japan's repeated transits and deliberate hype today not only mimic the US in pledging loyalty and acting as a pawn in Washington's strategy to contain China, but also reflect the rise of right-wing ideology within Japan itself."

Regarding the back-to-back transits by British and Japanese warships, Zhang said that the two countries are competing to demonstrate loyalty to the US by provoking China and seeking US favor, a strategy that ultimately harms others without benefiting themselves. Their deliberate provocations will be firmly opposed by the Chinese people and will in no way shake China's determination to safeguard its national sovereignty and territorial integrity, the expert added.