Taipei, December 19: China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, marking its first transit of the waterway since formally entering service last month.
In a statement on Wednesday, the ministry said Taiwan’s armed forces monitored the carrier as it passed through the strait, which separates the democratically governed island from China.
The ministry released a grainy black-and-white image of the vessel showing no aircraft on its deck, but did not disclose where the photograph was taken or provide further details of the transit.
China’s Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Taiwan reports almost daily Chinese military activity around the island, which Beijing views as its territory. Taipei says the manoeuvres form part of a sustained pressure campaign against its democratically elected government. China claims sovereignty over the Taiwan Strait, a major artery for global maritime trade. Taiwan and the United States say it is an international waterway.
The Fujian, China’s third aircraft carrier, features a flat flight deck and electromagnetic catapults for launching aircraft, making it significantly more capable than the Liaoning and Shandong, China’s first two carriers, which are based on older Russian designs and use ski-jump ramps.
The carrier is expected to operate a larger and more diverse mix of aircraft, including early-warning planes and, eventually, China’s first carrier-capable stealth jet fighters.
The Fujian previously sailed through the Taiwan Strait in September during sea trials before continuing into the disputed South China Sea.
Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the carrier’s commissioning and flag-presenting ceremony in the southern island province of Hainan last month and boarded the vessel for an inspection tour. Taiwan’s government rejects China’s sovereignty claims, saying only the island’s people can decide their future.
