The Chinese military escorted an American destroyer into the Taiwan Strait.

The Chinese military escorted the US destroyer USS Milius as it passed through the Taiwan Strait, Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Combat Command Eastern Zone spokesman Shi Yi said in a WeChat statement from the PLA.

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“The Eastern Zone of the PLA Combat Command organized detachments to escort and monitor the destroyer along the entire route,” he said.

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The American ship passed through the strait on 16 April.

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The Chinese military, Shi Yi said, maintains a high degree of combat readiness to resolutely defend national sovereignty and security, as well as regional stability.

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The situation around Taiwan escalated significantly after a visit to the island in early August last year by then-Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi. China, which considers the island one of its provinces, condemned her trip, seeing in this move Washington’s support for Taiwanese separatism, and held large-scale military exercises.