China Coast Guard (CCG) tracked and "fully monitored" a US Coast Guard vessel that sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, the CCG spokesperson Gan Yu said in a statement Thursday, calling the US move a public hype and vowing to "resolutely protect China's national sovereignty, security and maritime rights and interests".

The passage of the US Coast Guard cutter through the Taiwan Strait came just a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended a two-day visit to Beijing, which once again exposes US' duplicitous practice of double-dealing toward China, casting doubt on US' sincerity in easing tensions and avoiding further deterioration of bilateral relations.

Instead of taking concrete steps to remove the obstacles in the path of a sound China-US relationship, Washington has been bent on stirring up tensions across the Taiwan Strait, which has been draining mutual trust and turning the region into a dangerous flashpoint.

Undoubtedly, the US' provocative strategies such as its heightened military presence in China's waters are unlikely to contribute to the resolution of differences and disputes between the two nations. On the contrary, these actions will exacerbate bilateral tensions and potentially even grow into a severe crisis. If the US persists in escalating its military activities in the region, China will be compelled to respond in order to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Ultimately, it will be the US that swallows the bitter fruit it has sown.