China Tensions Surge Again 

Two American warships sailed through the Taiwan Strait for the first time since House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s controversial trip to Taiwan earlier this month, sparking an angry warning from the Chinese military and further ratcheting up tensions between Washington and Beijing. China claims the self-ruled island as part of its sovereign territory, but U.S. Navy ships regularly traverse the waterway separating Taiwan from the mainland to reinforce U.S. claims that the strait is open to all international traffic.