WASHINGTON, August 28. /TASS/. Two U.S. Navy warships entered the Taiwan Strait, three US officials told Reuters. This is the first such operation since heightened tension with China over U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, the agency wrote.
"The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, on Saturday said U.S. Navy cruisers Chancellorsville and Antietam were carrying out the operation which was still underway. Such operations usually take between eight and 12 hours to complete and are closely monitored by the Chinese military," the agency said.
The Chinese government repeatedly stated that the August 2-3 visit to Taipei by Pelosi, who is the third highest-ranking US politician, was a provocation which should be regarded as a "wrong signal to Taiwanese separatists." A day after this visit, Beijing introduced sanctions against the US House Speaker and her family, as well as froze several bilateral intergovernmental mechanisms of interaction with Washington. Additionally, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army launched military drills in the Taiwan Strait and around the island.