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US guided missile destroyer sails through Taiwan Strait

USS Barry passed through strait between Taiwan and China several times before

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The USS Barry sailed through the Taiwan Strait Saturday (Facebook, 7th Fleet photo) 

The USS Barry sailed through the Taiwan Strait Saturday (Facebook, 7th Fleet photo) 

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The guided missile destroyer USS Barry sailed through the Taiwan Strait to emphasize the right to free navigation in the Indo-Pacific region, the United States 7th fleet said on its Facebook page Saturday (Nov. 21).

The ship is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer based in Yokosuka, Japan, and has made trips through the Taiwan Strait before, most recently in October, the Liberty Times reported. Saturday’s passage amounted to the 11th journey by a U.S. Navy vessel in the area this year.

“The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the 7th fleet wrote on its Facebook page, adding that “the U.S. Navy will continue to fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows.”

Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense added that the journey took place from north and to south, and that as usual, it was monitoring all appearances by military vessels and aircrafts in the island’s vicinity.