WATCH: Pressure escalates in Taiwan Strait as allies sail warships through disputed waters

The Taiwan Strait is increasingly becoming a flashpoint that could tip the world into a third world war, as China continues to insist one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world belongs exclusively to the People’s Republic of China.

In a show of strength and support for the democratically run island nation of Taiwan, the U.S. Navy’s USS Higgins and the Royal Canadian Navy’s frigate HMCS Vancouver sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Sunday.

The U.S. Navy’s 7th fleet said in a statement the transit was “routine,” consistent with international law, and was meant to uphold the principle of freedom that other countries have the right to also navigate the Strait.

“Higgins and Vancouver’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrated the United States’ and Canada’s commitment to upholding freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle. The international community’s navigational rights and freedoms in the Taiwan Strait should not be limited. The United States rejects any assertion of sovereignty or jurisdiction that is inconsistent with freedoms of navigations, overflight, and other lawful uses of the sea and air,” the statement said.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian condemned the move during a regular press conference Monday, stating the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan are part of Chinese territory, and rejected the claim the move was simply a demonstration of freedom of navigation.

“On the US and Canadian warships’ transit through the Taiwan Strait, the PLA [People’s Liberation Army] Eastern Theater Command has made a response. Let me stress that Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory. The Taiwan question is not about freedom of navigation but about China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. We firmly oppose any act of provocation under the pretext of freedom of navigation that threatens China’s sovereignty and security,” Lin said.

US and Canada sent warships through the Taiwan Strait, with China issuing a warning, claiming such actions ‘undermine’ peace in the region https://t.co/fJyrdZX7BF pic.twitter.com/nLzZ0LQewX

— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) October 21, 2024

The move came on the heels of China conducting blockade drills around Taiwan last week, using its naval fleet to cut off key port entries and surround the island. China’s President Xi Jinping claimed the drills were in response to Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te’s remarks on an independent Taiwan during its National Day celebrations.

Nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council Global China Hub Elizabeth Freund Larus told Fox News Digital China was planning on doing the drills no matter what.

“China planned the exercises in advance and would have carried them out regardless of what Lai said … The military exercises are intended to wear down Taiwan’s military hardware and personnel. The purposes of the exercises are to threaten Taiwan’s security to the point that the Taiwan people lose confidence in their government and to change the status quo of a Taiwan separate from China,” Larus said.

This is not the first time the U.S. and Canada have conducted joint operations in the Taiwan Strait. In early June, while sailing through the Strait, a Chinese warship attempted to intercept a U.S. destroyer, coming within 137 meters of the vessel.

The US and Canadian navies were conducting a joint exercise in the Taiwan Strait when a Chinese warship came within 137 meters of a US destroyer https://t.co/PBUvXYkRXd pic.twitter.com/JnN8a91N8r

— Reuters (@Reuters) June 4, 2023

The US and Canadian navies were conducting a joint exercise in the Taiwan Straight when the Chinese warship cut in front of the US destroyer.

See more here https://t.co/UjOCN2hUPE pic.twitter.com/uQYVq8b645

— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 5, 2023