Australian frigate transits Taiwan Strait unimpededCLOSELY MONITORED: The guided missile frigate made the transit without incident, but Chinese state media claimed PLA forces had watched its sailing closelyStaff writer, with ReutersAn Australian warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait, an Australian government source said yesterday, in the latest transit of the sensitive sea lane by a US ally, which Chinese state-backed media said was tracked and monitored by the Chinese military. Beijing views the narrow, highly strategic strait as Chinese territorial waters and has responded aggressively on occasion to foreign navies sailing there. The HMAS Toowoomba an Anzac-class frigate, “conducted a routine transit through the Taiwan Strait on Friday and Saturday as part of a Regional Presence Deployment in the Indo-Pacific region,” the source said. Royal Australian Navy vessel HMAS Toowoomba is shown at Changi Naval Base during a maritime defence exhibition in Singapore on May 4, 2023. The Ministry of National Defense said in a statement yesterday that it closely monitors the skies and waters around Taiwan and that the Taiwan Strait is an international waterway for which all countries enjoy the right of freedom of navigation.

Source: Taipei Times February 22, 2026 16:54 UTC