FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
British and American fleets face China, Taiwan chessboard for a global conflict!
Tensions in East Asia have entered a new phase of escalation after two warships, the United Kingdom's HMS Richmond and the United States' USS Higgins, passed through the Taiwan Strait on Friday, provoking a fierce reaction from China.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) called the movements "provocations and creating disturbances," and said the ships had been followed and warned by Chinese naval and air forces. Beijing accused Washington and London of sending wrong signals that it said "undermine peace and stability in the strait."
On the other hand, both the US and Britain declared that the passage was “routine navigation” and in full compliance with international law, stressing that the 180km strait between Taiwan and mainland China is international waters and cannot be claimed as the territory of any state. The US Indo-Pacific Command stressed that freedom of navigation is a right that should not be restricted and that all Western military ships operate under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The incident comes in a wider context of naval clashes and displays of force. Just days earlier, another fleet of Canadian and Australian ships had made the same passage. China, to emphasize its dominance in the region, sent its newest aircraft carrier, the Fujian, currently undergoing testing, into the same sea route on the same day. The Taiwan Strait has now become the epicenter of the clash between a democratic world and a rising authoritarian superpower. Since 2021, such passages have occurred almost every month, mainly by US allies such as Britain, France, Canada and Australia.
China considers Taiwan to be its own territory, a breakaway province that must be reunified, if necessary by force. Taiwan, which functions as an independent state, rejects this narrative, while relying on its strategic alliance with the United States for survival. In this spirit, the head of the Council on China Relations in the Taiwanese government, Chiu Chui-cheng, declared in Washington that China is actually preparing an invasion of Taiwan, adding that if Taiwan falls, then a domino effect will occur throughout East Asia, with serious consequences for American and global security.
In parallel, the US is facing Chinese provocations in the South China Sea, where US Secretary of State Marco Rubio denounced Beijing’s decision to declare the Scarborough Shoal a “nature reserve” – a move seen as a maneuver to justify illegal control over an area within the Philippines’ maritime borders. Rubio said this is another attempt by China to impose false territorial claims through military and diplomatic pressure, jeopardizing freedom of navigation in an area that is crossed by more than $3 trillion in trade each year.
The situation is reaching a point where symbolic crossings and diplomatic statements may no longer be enough. The Taiwan Strait has become a chessboard where every move carries the potential for a much larger clash. With the US increasing its military presence and China demonstrating ever more overt force, the world is adding another dangerous hotbed of conflict. / Adapted from " Sky News"
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