TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Ahead of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Canada, a Canadian naval frigate transited the Taiwan Strait last week despite earlier warnings from Beijing’s ambassador to Canada against such actions.
According to The Globe and Mail, Canadian Department of National Defence Spokesperson Andree-Anne Poulin said that the frigate HMCS Charlottetown conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit on May 22 and completed the passage the following day, per CNA.
Wang is expected to arrive in Canada on Thursday evening for a three-day visit. It marks the first visit by a Chinese foreign minister in 10 years, as both countries seek to expand cooperation and trade ties amid rising US protectionism and tariff pressures.
In late April, Chinese Ambassador to Canada Wang Di warned in an interview with the Globe and Mail that continued Canadian naval transits through the Taiwan Strait or visits to Taiwan by Canadian lawmakers could damage the new “strategic partnership” between the two countries.
The report said the Canadian government is actively seeking to diversify export markets and attract new foreign investment, with China viewed as one of the key options. However, Ottawa has maintained its existing stance on national security.
Earlier this month, Canadian Defence Minister David McGuinty stressed that Ottawa considers the Taiwan Strait to be “international waters,” per The Globe and Mail. The term refers to transit passage rights under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which permits ships, including warships, to pass through international straits without prior approval from coastal states.
Canadian Conservative Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs and Member of Parliament Michael Chong welcomed the transit, saying the government needed to show it would not comply with “Beijing’s unreasonable demand,” per The Globe and Mail. Earlier this month, Chong visited Taiwan despite warnings from the Chinese ambassador and met with President Lai Ching-te (賴清德).
Canadian naval vessels transited the Taiwan Strait 11 times between 2018 and former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s departure from office last year. Since Prime Minister Mark Carney took office, this was the second transit.
The previous transit occurred in September, when a Canadian frigate and an Australian destroyer sailed through the strait. China at the time accused Canada of “trouble-making and provocation,” according to Reuters.
Vice-president of Research and Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada Vina Nadjibulla told The Globe and Mail that Canada’s actions in the South China Sea and East China Sea are being closely watched by Beijing, Tokyo, Taipei, Australia, and the US. She said the latest transit signals Canada’s intention to maintain an independent Indo-Pacific strategy.
“It shows that Canada is committed to upholding international law and ensuring that international waterways, such as the Taiwan Strait, remain open to all countries, including Canada,” Nadjibulla said.
Nadjibulla added that Canada must simultaneously pursue multiple policy goals, including deepening limited economic cooperation with China, one of the key objectives of Wang Yi’s visit, while also maintaining a firm position on broader national security issues.
