A
Japanese warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait between Taiwan and the
Chinese mainland for the first time, Japanese media have reported.
The
Sazanami, a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer, passed through the strait
from north to south on Wednesday while on its way to participate in
multilateral drills in the South China Sea, government sources were quoted as
saying.
Navy
ships from Australia and New Zealand, which were part of the exercise,
transited the waterway with the Japanese vessel.
This
comes less than two weeks after Germany sent two warships across the narrow
body of water, in what it said was a demonstration of its freedom of navigation
- drawing a rebuke from China.
The
defence ministries of Japan and Taiwan have not commented on the passage.
Chinese
state newspaper Global Times, citing an unnamed source, said the Chinese
military "conducted tracking and monitoring throughout [the vessels']
entire course and had the situation under control".
Both
the US and Taiwan say the 180km (112-mile) strait - a key shipping and trade
route through which about half of the global container fleet pass - is part of
international waters and is open to all naval vessels.
But
China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, claims
sovereignty and jurisdiction over the strait.
Bec
Strating, an international relations professor at La Trobe University in
Australia, said Japan's reported transit is "part of a broader pattern of
greater naval presence by countries in and beyond Asia that are concerned about
China's maritime assertions".
"Japan
in particular has been dealing with China's 'grey zone' tactics in the East
China Sea," she told AFP news agency.
Grey
zone warfare tactics are aimed at weakening an adversary over a prolonged
period of time, analysts say.
Washington
and its allies are crossing the Taiwan Strait more frquently to reinforce its
status as an international waterway.
China's
military accused Germany of increasing security risks by sailing though the
strait on 13 September, but Berlin said it acted in accordance with
international standards. It was the first time in 22 years for a German naval
vessel to traverse the strait.
Besides
Germany and Japan, Canada, Australia and the UK have also sailed warships
through the strait in recent years.
Tokyo
has reported an increase in Chinese military activity near Japan and around
Taiwan in recent months.
Last
week, Beijing sent an aircraft carrier between two Japanese islands near Taiwan
for the first time. In August, a Chinese spy plane flew inside Japan's
airspace, prompting Tokyo to condemn the incursion as "utterly
unacceptable" and a "serious violation of sovereignty".
The
leaders of the Quad group of nations - Japan, Australia, India and the US -
said last week that they would expand cooperation on maritime security to
counter China's increasing assertiveness in the South China Sea.