Stars and Stripes:
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy has sailed a guided-missile destroyer between mainland China and Taiwan for the third month in a row, contentious passages meant to ensure vessels can freely navigate there.
The USS Curtis Wilbur and U.S. Coast Guard cutter Bertholf passed through the Taiwan Strait overnight Sunday into Monday “in accordance with international law,” said 7th Fleet spokesman Lt. Joe Keiley.
China protests U.S. warships sailing through the approximately 100-mile-wide strait without first seeking its permission; however, the U.S. insists the strait is an international waterway.
This week’s passage was the fifth time in six months that U.S. warships have made the journey. The USS Stethem and cargo ship USNS Cesar Chavez passed through last month. The USS McCampbell and fleet replenishment oiler USNS Walter S. Diehl sailed there in January.
