The incident occurred Saturday while the USS Chung Hun and the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal were conducting a so-called “freedom of navigation” exercise in the strait between Taiwan and mainland China, according to the Associated Press.
The US military said the US destroyer Chung-Hoon and the Canadian frigate Montreal were conducting a “routine” transit of the strait on Saturday when the Chinese ship cut into the path of the destroyer at a distance of 137 meters, according to Reuters.
In the video released by the US Navy, a Chinese warship appears as it crosses the road in front of the US guided-missile destroyer, forcing it to slow down to avoid collision. The American destroyer did not change course.
A message in English to the Chinese ship could be heard over the radio warning of “attempts to restrict freedom of navigation”, but the exact meaning of the phrase was not clear due to the wind.
China has not commented directly on US criticism of the incident, and its foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
On Saturday, China’s military accused the United States and Canada of “deliberately raising risks” after the two countries’ fleets carried out a rare joint sail through the Taiwan Strait.
On Sunday, Taiwan’s defense ministry described China’s actions with the US and Canadian ships as “provocative” and said maintaining peace and stability in the strait is a common responsibility of free and democratic countries.
“Any measures aimed at increasing tension and danger will not contribute to regional security,” it added in a statement, calling on China to respect the right to freedom of navigation.
This is the second such incident in days.
The United States said a Chinese fighter jet carried out an “aggressive” maneuver on May 26 near a US military aircraft over the South China Sea in international airspace.
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