Senior US admiral in unannounced Taiwan visit: Report | Al Jazeera

A two-star Navy admiral who oversees US military intelligence in the Asia-Pacific region has made an unannounced visit to Taiwan, two sources told the Reuters news agency on Sunday, in a high-level trip that could upset China.

The sources, who include a Taiwanese official familiar with the situation, said the official was Rear Admiral Michael Studeman. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity.

According to the Navy’s website, Studeman is director of the J2, which oversees intelligence, at the US military’s Indo-Pacific Command.

The Pentagon declined to comment. Taiwan’s foreign ministry confirmed on Sunday that a US official had arrived in Taiwan but declined to provide details, saying the trip had not been made public.

China, which claims democratically run Taiwan as its territory, reacted with fury when US Health Secretary Alex Azar travelled to Taipei in August, followed by Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth Keith Krach in September, sending fighter jets near the island on each occasion.