China has called for widespread claims over the Taiwan Strait, setting the stage for a possible conflict with the self-governing island and the US, which says it will continue to sail with warships through what it insists are international waters.
Citing the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLES) and Chinese law, Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said the strait, which ranges from 70 nautical miles to 220 nautical miles, , belongs to China.
The unprecedented claim was presented by the Chinese to U.S. military officials during recent meetings, but was only made public yesterday and comes when Taiwan status has fueled tensions between Beijing and Washington.
The U.S. Navy has often sent ships across the Taiwan Strait in what it calls