Taiwan claims to have detected 23 Chinese military aircraft and 5 ships around the island

At the time, the Coast Guard reported that 12 Chinese vessels had been spotted around a remote island in Taiwan.

“About 3 p.m. (local time, 10:00 a.m. Lithuanian time) a flotilla of seven vessels belonging to the Chinese Maritime and Fisheries Departments entered our restricted waters” around Jinmen, the service said, adding that four more Chinese coast guard vessels did the same, while the fifth “sailed behind the limits of our waters’.

The latest incidents were reported in the run-up to the May 20 inauguration of Taiwan’s new president, Lai Ching-te, whom China considers a dangerous separatist.

China, which claims the self-governing island as part of its territory, often sends its military planes and ships around the island.

The 180 km Taiwan Strait separates the self-governing island from China and is an important artery for cargo ships.

The US warship USS Halsey also passed through the strait on Wednesday.

The US 7th Fleet said on Wednesday that the destroyer “conducted a routine transit through the Taiwan Strait on May 8 in waters where freedom of navigation and overflight is permitted under international law.”

It added that this crossing of the USS Halsey “demonstrates the commitment of the United States to the principle of freedom of navigation for all nations.”

“No member of the international community should be intimidated or forced to give up their rights and freedoms,” the US 7th Fleet said.

Colonel Li Xi (Li Si), a spokesman for China’s Naval Forces Eastern Theater Command, called the passage of the American destroyer a public eyesore.

The Navy and Air Force were monitoring the USS Halsey’s passage through the Taiwan Strait, he said.

“Military forces in theater remain on high alert at all times and resolutely protect national sovereignty and security,” the statement said.

Lai Ching-te, whom Beijing considers a dangerous separatist, won Taiwan’s presidential election in January, with China saying his victory would lead to war and Taiwan’s decline.

China says it intends to seize Taiwan one day, by force if necessary.

Tensions between Beijing and Taipei have further increased since the administration and government of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen rejected China’s claims to the island.