"On September 12, the US destroyer Higgins and the UK frigate Richmond transited the Taiwan Strait and engaged in disturbance and provocation," Senior Colonel Shi Yi, a spokesman for the Chinese military's Eastern Theater Command, said in a statement Friday.
The Chinese military "organised naval and air forces to track and monitor their transit throughout the process", he said, adding that "the actions... undermine peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."
Beijing views Taiwan as part of its territory and claims jurisdiction over the body of water that separates the self-ruled island from the Chinese mainland.
The United States, Britain and other countries view the Taiwan Strait as international waters open to all vessels.
China announced on Friday that its latest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, had passed through the strait to conduct tests in preparation for future service.
Last week Australian and Canadian warships also sailed through the waterway, drawing criticism from Beijing.
China has increased its military, economic and diplomatic pressure on Taiwan in recent years, and has not ruled out the use of force to seize control of it.
Taiwan's military has been reporting near-daily sightings of Chinese warships around its waters, as well as sorties by drones and fighter jets around the island.
On Saturday, the Taiwanese defence ministry said it had detected 31 Chinese military aircraft and 13 Chinese naval vessels around the island since early Friday -- the highest number in a 24-hour period since May.
The ministry said "25 out of 31 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern, central and southwestern ADIZ", referring to the island's air defence identification zone.
"We have monitored the situation and responded," it added.
China says newest aircraft carrier sailed through Taiwan Strait
Beijing (AFP) Sept 12, 2025 -
China said on Friday that its third and newest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, recently sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait to carry out "scientific research trials and training missions" in the South China Sea.
Beijing has ploughed billions of dollars into modernising its military in recent years, a trend that has unnerved some governments in East Asia despite China insisting its aims are peaceful.
China has two carriers in operation -- the Liaoning and Shandong -- with the Fujian currently undergoing sea trials.
China's navy said on Friday that undertaking cross-regional trials "is a normal part of the aircraft carrier's construction process".
It is "not directed at any specific target", a spokesman for the Chinese navy, Leng Guowei, said in a statement.
However, its transit through the sensitive Taiwan Strait was intended to signal "China's rise as a strong military power, and beyond that, a maritime great power", said Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
"It's to flex China's newfound military strength and send a veritable signal to potential adversaries," he said.
Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence said Friday it had used "joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance means to fully grasp the situation and responded accordingly".
Japan's defence ministry said that on Thursday afternoon it had identified three Chinese naval ships advancing southwest in waters approximately 200 kilometres (124 miles) northwest of one of the disputed Senkaku Islands, known in Chinese as the Diaoyu Islands.
"Among these, the Fujian aircraft carrier was confirmed by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force for the first time," it said in a statement.
Japan said in July that China's intensifying military activities could "seriously impact" its security, citing the first confirmed incursion by a Chinese military aircraft into its airspace last August in an annual threat assessment.
China said that a coastguard fleet had "patrolled within the territorial waters of the Diaoyu Islands" on Friday.
Last year, Chinese vessels sailed near the Japanese-administered islands a record 355 times, according to Tokyo.
- Expanding its reach -
Compared to the other seas, the South China Sea "presents a more challenging environment with harsher conditions, making the trials more rigorous" for the Fujian, said Song Zhongping, a Chinese military commentator.
After undergoing sea trials and completing further adaptive training, the Fujian will likely be commissioned into active service, Song told AFP.
The Soviet-built Liaoning is China's oldest aircraft carrier, commissioned in 2012, while the Shandong entered service in 2019.
Analysts at Washington-based think tank CSIS have said the Fujian is expected to feature more advanced take-off systems, allowing the Chinese air force to deploy jets carrying larger payloads and more fuel.
China has stepped up a massive expansion of its naval forces in recent years as it seeks to grow its reach in the Pacific and challenge a US-led alliance.
The US Department of Defense said in a December report that China numerically has the largest navy in the world, with a battle force of more than 370 ships and submarines.
Beijing said in June that its Liaoning and Shandong carrier formations conducted combat drills in the western Pacific Ocean, unsettling regional neighbours including Japan.
A Taiwanese security official also said that month Beijing had deployed its two aircraft carrier groups around the island in May.
The Chinese Communist Party has refused to rule out using force to seize control of Taiwan, a democratic, self-ruled island that China insists is part of its territory.
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