Navy deploys warships through Taiwan Strait for first time since Pelosi visit

The USS Antietam and USS Chancellorsville cruisers are making a routine transit through the Strait, which usually takes about 12 hours, according to a statement from the Navy’s 7th Fleet, which is headquartered in Japan.

“The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. The United States military flies, sails, and operates anywhere international law allows,” the statement said.

China said it closely monitored the ships.

Troops “are on high alert and ready to foil any provocation at any time,” Colonel Shi Yi, said in a statement posted to Chinese microblogging site Weibo, on the account of the People Liberation Army’s Eastern Theatre Command.