China was furious when two U.S. Navy vessels sailed this week through the Taiwan Strait, the first time since Donald Trump assumed office in late January.

About once a week, the U.S. Navy transits the Strait, sometimes accompanied by ships of allied nations. China, which claims Taiwan to be its territory, claims the strategic waterway as theirs.

China's military confirmed that the two U.S. vessels, the destroyer Lyndon B. Johnson, and the survey vessel Bowditch had passed through the Strait between Monday and Thursday, and added that Chinese forces were dispatched to maintain watch.

The Eastern Theatre Command of the People's Liberation Army issued a statement in the early hours of Wednesday.

The U.S. Navy didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment.

China's military is active in the Taiwan Strait every day, as part what Taiwan's Government views as Beijing's pressure campaigns.

Taiwan President Lai Ching Te rejects Beijing's claims of sovereignty, saying that only Taiwanese people can decide the future. Reporting by Liz Lee and Urvi dugar in Beijing; writing and additional reporting by Ben Blanchard and Gerry Doyle in Taipei.

(source: Reuters)