TAIPEI: Beijing said on Tuesday it deployed air and naval forces to monitor a US military plane as it flew over politically sensitive waters separating China and Taiwan.

The United States and its allies regularly cross through the 180-kilometre (112-mile) Taiwan Strait, either by ship or aircraft, to reinforce the international status of the waterway, angering Beijing. China considers Taiwan to be part of its territory and claims jurisdiction over the body of water separating the two.

To assert its claims, Beijing regularly deploys fighter jets and warships around the island, while opposing transits by military ships and aircraft belonging to the United States and its allies.

“A US Navy P-8A Poseidon transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace on Nov 26, 2024 (local time),” the US Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement.

“The aircraft’s transit of the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open” Asia-Pacific.

China said it had monitored the aircraft and condemned the flight for being “openly hyped”.

“US remarks distort legal principles, confuse the public and mislead international perception,” said Cao Jun, a senior colonel and spokesman for China’s Eastern Theatre Air Force, in a statement. Beijing had “organised naval and air forces to monitor and guard the trajectory of the US aircraft and effectively responded and dealt with it”, Cao added.

During a previous transit by a US P-8A Poseidon in September, the Chinese military tailed the aircraft.

The United States is Taiwan’s most important security partner, but like most other countries it does not have official diplomatic relations with Taipei.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2024