21-6-2023 (TAIPEI) On Wednesday, China’s Shandong aircraft carrier led a fleet of warships through the Taiwan Strait, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry. Beijing has increased air and sea incursions around Taiwan in recent years, claiming it as its own territory. The deployment of the Shandong through the Strait separating Taiwan from China is a rare occurrence.
In a statement, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, “A Chinese Communist Shandong aircraft carrier group passed through the west side of the Taiwan Strait in a southerly direction today, Jun 21. The (Taiwan) military was closely monitoring our territorial air and sea movements and will respond accordingly.”
The Shandong, one of the two aircraft carriers in the Chinese fleet, last passed through the Strait in May. It was also deployed during war games staged by Beijing in April, which involved fighter jets carrying “live ammunition” conducting simulated strikes around the island.
These exercises were in response to a meeting between Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen and US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, who staunchly rejects China’s territorial claims over the island. Beijing had warned before the meeting that it would provoke strong countermeasures. The presence of Chinese warships and jets around Taiwan has intensified since the meeting.
Previous transits through the waterway include one in March 2022, right before Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden held a phone call. Before that, the carrier transited in December 2020, a day after a US warship had passed through, and in December 2019, weeks before Taiwanese voters went to the polls.
