Trump Taps Former DHS Official Troy Edgar for U.S. Ambassador Role in El Salvador 
Syria Arrests Five Suspects After Deadly Attack on U.S. and Syrian Troops in Palmyra 
Trump Weighs Reclassifying Marijuana as Schedule III, Potentially Transforming U.S. Cannabis Industry 
U.S. and Mexico Reach New Agreement to Tackle Tijuana River Sewage Crisis 
Trump’s Rob Reiner Remarks Spark Bipartisan Outrage After Tragic Deaths 
Supporters Gather Ahead of Verdict in Jimmy Lai’s Landmark Hong Kong National Security Trial 
Hong Kong Democratic Party Disbands After Member Vote Amid Security Crackdown 
Belarus Frees Opposition Leaders Maria Kalesnikava and Viktar Babaryka in U.S.-Brokered Deal 
Korea Zinc Plans $6.78 Billion U.S. Smelter Investment With Government Partnership 
Taiwan Political Standoff Deepens as President Lai Urges Parliament to Withdraw Disputed Laws 
Ukraine Claims First-Ever Underwater Drone Strike on Russian Missile Submarine 
Sydney Bondi Beach Shooting Sparks Calls for Stronger Protection of Jewish Community in Australia 
Lukashenko Says Maduro Welcome in Belarus Amid Rising U.S.-Venezuela Tensions 
Ukraine’s NATO Concession Unlikely to Shift Peace Talks, Experts Say 
Zelenskiy Signals Willingness to Drop NATO Bid as Ukraine, U.S. Hold Crucial Peace Talks in Berlin 
Pakistan’s Army Chief Faces Gaza Troop Dilemma Amid US Pressure 
Trump Sues BBC for Defamation Over Edited Capitol Riot Speech Clip 
In the highly contested South China Sea, there is also the disputed Taiwan Strait that China claims to have control over. Beijing criticized the US for making “security risks” when it sailed through the waterway.
The Chinese military said Wednesday that the United States is a “maker of security risks” in the Taiwan Strait with its frequent transits through the waterway. To note, China is always angered whenever ships of other countries, most notably the US, pass through the Taiwan Strait.
The US Navy 7th Fleet said the USS Benfold destroyer sailed through the Taiwan Strait in a “routine” transit that fully complies with international law. Washington has carried out such transits once a month, which China views as a sign of support for Taiwan, which Beijing also claims sovereignty over.
The People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command said it followed the US ship throughout the Taiwan Strait and issued a warning.
“The frequent provocations and showing off by the United States fully demonstrate that the United States is a destroyer of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and a maker of security risks in the Taiwan Strait,” said the Eastern Theater Command in a statement.
The US Navy responded, saying the ship “transited through a corridor of the Strait that is beyond the territorial sea of any coastal State” and that its transit represents Washington’s commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
Taiwan’s defense ministry also responded to China’s claims, saying that the US ship sailed north through the Strait and that everything was “as normal.”
Both the United States and Taiwan rebuked China’s claims over the Taiwan Strait last month. Taiwanese Premier Su Tseng-Chang said at the time that the Taiwan Strait was an international waterway and was not “China’s inland sea.”
In an email response to Reuters, US State Department spokesman Ned Price also echoed Taiwan’s assertion that the Taiwan Strait is an international waterway where freedom of navigation is guaranteed under international law.
Price also reiterated Washington’s concerns about Beijing’s rhetoric and pressure campaign on the island nation and that the US will continue to “fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows,” including the Taiwan Strait.
