Taiwan's defence ministry reported the Liaoning's movement and said its forces conducted continuous monitoring, though the specific countermeasures taken beyond surveillance remain unclear. The exact date and time of the transit on Monday have not been disclosed. This marks the latest in a series of Chinese carrier activities in the region; the last reported instance was in mid-December when the newer carrier Fujian made a similar journey.
The Liaoning, the oldest of China's three operating aircraft carriers, held drills near Japan's southwest island chain in early December. China asserts it alone has sovereignty over the Taiwan Strait, a claim rejected by Taipei and Washington, which consider the strait international waters. S.
Navy sends warships through the strait every few months, occasionally joined by allies, actions Beijing views as provocations. On Friday, China said it monitored a Japanese warship's transit in the strait, calling it a deliberate provocation. Politically, Chinese President Xi Jinping recently told visiting Taiwanese opposition leader Cheng Li-wun that China would absolutely not tolerate independence for Taiwan and reiterated his call for reunification.
According to Xi, people on both sides of the strait are Chinese and want peace. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and has threatened to reunite it by force if necessary, with recent months seeing a ramp-up in military and political pressure. The specific military activities the Liaoning conducted during its transit and whether China's defence ministry will issue an official comment are unknown, as is the carrier's current location and next destination.