SpaceWar.com - Your World At War
China says 'issued a warning' to US Navy ship in S. China Sea
Beijing, May 10 (AFP) May 10, 2024
Beijing's military on Friday said it had tailed and issued a warning to a US Navy ship in the disputed South China Sea, just days after the same vessel sparked China's ire by sailing through the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis. It deploys hundreds of coast guard, navy and other vessels to patrol and militarise the waters.

And on Friday, military spokesman Tian Junli said China had "organised naval and air forces to tail and monitor" the American guided-missile destroyer USS Halsey.

Those forces "issued a warning to drive it away", he added, after the ship "illegally intruded into China's territorial waters near the Xisha Islands without approval from the Chinese government", Tian said, referring to the Paracel Islands by their Chinese name.

"The actions by the United States seriously violate China's sovereignty and security," he added.

In a statement Friday, the US Navy confirmed its ship had "asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the South China Sea near the Paracel Islands".

"At the conclusion of the operation, USS Halsey exited the excessive claim and continued operations in the South China Sea," it added.

"Unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose a serious threat to the freedom of the seas," the statement said.

Maritime confrontations between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea have raised fears of a wider conflict that could involve the United States and other allies.

This week, US and Philippine forces carried out war games around 400 kilometres (250 miles) south of Taiwan.

China in response warned "any military exercise should not be targeted at or harm the interests of third parties".

Friday's naval spat between US and Chinese forces came just days after the USS Halsey sailed through the Taiwan Strait, a narrow 180-kilometre body of water separating the island from China.

Chinese naval colonel Li Xi called the US warship passage "public hype".

He added in a statement late on Wednesday that the Eastern Theatre Command had also organised naval and air forces "to monitor the passage of the US ship through the entire process".

China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has said it will not rule out using force to bring the island under Beijing's control.

Taiwanese defence and coast guard officials on Thursday reported dozens of Chinese warplanes and ships had been detected around the island.


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Interference to astronomy the unintended consequence of faster internet
Russian rocket puts Iran satellite into space: Iran media
Viasat unveils IoT Nano service for global low-power connectivity

24/7 Energy News Coverage
NASA's X-59 moves under its own power
Sri Lanka orders Singapore shipowner to pay US$1 bn over marine disaster
More than 80% of Tuvalu seeks Australian climate visa

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
New MachLab rocket test site launches UK into next phase of space engineering
Ukraine's anti-graft body says new bill restores independence
Iran meets European powers amid threats of UN sanctions snapback

24/7 News Coverage
Australia's mammal megafauna face long-term decline from extinctions and invasive species
Alien life clues may emerge from deep sea volcanic vents on Earth
Seismic signatures reveal fragmentation patterns of fireball meteoroids



All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.