The U.S. reduced its number of naval transits through the Taiwan Strait in 2022 to the lowest level in four years even as China stepped up military pressure on the island it vows to one day control.
The U.S. 7th Fleet sent nine warships through the body of water separating China and Taiwan last year, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. The fleet did say it sailed a destroyer though on Thursday, one the Chinese military said it monitored.
The U.S. Navy also conducted four "freedom-of-navigation operations” through the South China Sea, the fewest in six years, trips it says show its dedication to a "free and open Indo-Pacific.”