CHINA’S NEWEST AIRCRAFT CARRIER MAKES FIRST VOYAGE THROUGH TAIWAN STRAIT . (PHOTO).

 China’s newest aircraft carrier makes first voyage through Taiwan Strait 

China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait for the first time, the Chinese navy announced Friday. The strait, which separates mainland China from self-governing Taiwan, has long been a flashpoint as Beijing continues to insist the island must come under its control, by force if necessary. The passage of the carrier, still in the midst of sea trials ahead of its formal commissioning, could be seen as a signal to the U.S. and its allies, but Chinese officials downplayed the move as routine, describing it as the most practical route to reach the South China Sea for scheduled training and scientific exercises.

This was Fujian’s ninth sea trial since May 2024, fueling speculation that its official commissioning is near. The carrier was escorted by two guided-missile destroyers as it sailed roughly 200 kilometers southwest of the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, which are claimed by both China and Japan. The passage comes shortly after heightened tensions in the region, with China’s military accusing Canadian and Australian warships of “provocative actions” for transiting the same waterway earlier in the week. The U.S. and its allies routinely conduct similar transits to assert freedom of navigation and signal opposition to any Chinese attempt to forcibly assert control over Taiwan. If the Fujian follows the precedent of its sister carrier, the Shandong — commissioned one month after its first Taiwan Strait transit in 2019 — it could be formally put into service by the end of this year. Once operational, the Fujian will join the Liaoning and Shandong in boosting China’s growing blue-water naval capabilities.