The warship passed through the straits on April 18, Indonesian Navy spokesman Tunggul told Reuters.

The 900km long straits link Asia with the Middle East and Europe, carrying about 25% of the world’s traded goods.

Navy commander Matthew Comer, a spokesman at the US military’s Indo-Pacific Command, identified the warship as the Japan-based USS Miguel Keith, which has been at sea “conducting routine operations in the US 7th Fleet”.

Comer did not provide details about the destination of the warship, citing US Navy policy not to discuss future operations or movements for security reasons, but said it had undergone maintenance in South Korea in early April.

The US Navy describes the USS Miguel Keith as a 240m-long vessel designed to be a customisable floating command base that can launch helicopters and small boats, provide living quarters for troops, and command-and-control facilities.

“Any vessel including warships transiting in the waters has rights of transit passage which can be exercised in a strait used for international navigation or international shipment,” Tunggul said.

The Indonesian Navy said that all vessels exercising their rights of transit are obliged to respect Indonesia as a coastal state and must not violate International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.