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US Navy jet flies over Taiwan Strait as China watches
US Navy shows presence weeks before key meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump
A US Navy patrol and reconnaissance aircraft has flown through international airspace over the strategic Taiwan Strait. The news was officially announced by the US Seventh Fleet.
The American anti-submarine aircraft P-8A Poseidon made the transit on Friday, the correspondent of Reuters in Taipei (reuters.com/world/china/us-navy-aircraft-transited-taiwan-strait-it-says-2026-08-22/). The US command said the mission demonstrated Washington's firm commitment to maintaining a “free and open Indo-Pacific region“ in accordance with international law.
The overflight provoked an immediate reaction from Beijing. The Chinese armed forces tracked and controlled the flight along its entire route, state media in China reported. The operation comes at an extremely sensitive time — Next month, Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit the United States for official talks with President Donald Trump in a bid to stabilize bilateral relations. Taiwan and the United States view the strait as an international waterway, while Beijing insists it has full jurisdiction over it.