US Navy deploys 4 warships east of Taiwan as Nancy Pelosi heads to Taipei
India Today
The US has deployed four warships to the east of Taiwan amid warnings from China over US senator Nancy Pelosi's visit to the island.
As U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi headed to Taipei on Tuesday amid intensifying warnings from China, four U.S. warships, including an aircraft carrier, were positioned in waters east of the island on "routine" deployments.
The carrier USS Ronald Reagan had transited the South China Sea and was currently in the Philippines Sea, east of Taiwan and the Philippines and south of Japan, a U.S. Navy official confirmed to Reuters on Tuesday.
The Japanese-based Reagan is operating with a guided missile cruiser, USS Antietam, and a destroyer, USS Higgins.
READ | Taiwan 'prepares for war' with China, puts military on alert ahead of US official's visit
"While they are able to respond to any eventuality, these are normal, routine deployments," the official said, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The official added that they were unable to comment on precise locations.
The U.S. Navy official said the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli was also in the area as part of a deployment to the region that started in early May from its home port of San Diego.
Pelosi, a long-time China critic, was expected to arrive in Taipei later on Tuesday, people briefed on the matter said, as the United States said it would not be intimidated by Chinese "saber rattling" over the visit. read more
