China's military has described the recent passage of a British warship through the Taiwan Strait as a disruptive act of "intentional provocation" that "undermines peace and stability." The British Royal Navy stated that HMS Spey’s patrol on Wednesday was part of a long-planned deployment conducted by international law. This marked the first British naval vessel patrol in the strait in four years, coinciding with the arrival of a UK carrier strike group in the region for a deployment expected to last several months.
China claims Taiwan as part of its territory, a stance that self-governing Taiwan rejects, and has not ruled out the use of force to "reunify" the island. A spokesman from China’s navy criticized the UK for "publicly hyping up" HMS Spey's journey, asserting that the UK's claims were a "distortion of legal principles and an attempt to mislead the public." The spokesman stated, "Such actions are intentional provocations that disrupt the situation and undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait." He added that China had monitored HMS Spey during its journey and that Chinese troops "will resolutely counter all threats and provocations."
Later, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry stated that while China respects the rights of other countries to sail through the Taiwan Strait, it "firmly opposes any country using the name of freedom of navigation to provoke and threaten China's sovereign security." Taiwan's foreign ministry praised the patrol as an act that upholds freedom of navigation in the Taiwan Strait.
While American warships frequently conduct freedom of navigation exercises in the strait, the last passage by a British naval vessel occurred in 2021 when HMS Richmond was deployed to Vietnam. China condemned that transit as well, sending troops to monitor the ship.
HMS Spey is one of two British warships permanently patrolling the Indo-Pacific region. Its passage through the Taiwan Strait coincides with the arrival of a UK carrier strike group, led by HMS Prince of Wales' aircraft carrier, which is set to be in the Indo-Pacific for eight months. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has described this as one of the carrier's largest deployments this century, aimed at "sending a clear message of strength to our adversaries and a message of unity and purpose to our allies." Approximately 4,000 UK military personnel are participating in this deployment, engaging with 30 countries through military operations and visits, and conducting exercises with the United States, India, Singapore, and Malaysia.
Tensions between China and Taiwan have escalated over the past year, particularly since Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who advocates a strong anti-Beijing stance, took office. He has characterized Beijing as a "foreign hostile force" and introduced policies aimed at countering Chinese influence operations in Taiwan. Meanwhile, China continues to conduct frequent military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, including a live-fire exercise in April that it claimed simulated strikes on critical ports and energy facilities.
China’s latest criticism of HMS Spey’s transit comes as two Chinese aircraft carriers are conducting an unprecedented simultaneous military drill in the Pacific off the coast of Japan, raising concerns in Tokyo