Chinese forces on Monday accused a US Navy ship of “illegally entering” the waters near the Second Thomas Reef, whose sovereignty is disputed between Beijing and Manila.
According to a statement from the People’s Liberation Army Southern Theater, a Chinese naval force was mobilized to shadow the USS Gabrielle Giffords during the operation.
In recent months, ships from the navies and coast guards of China and the Philippines have clashed repeatedly around Second Thomas Reef, as China tries to prevent the Philippines from refueling and refueling a rusting warship that deliberately ran aground in 1999. repair to serve as an army. outpost.
Faced with China’s military might, the Philippines sought help from the United States, agreeing earlier this year to expand the U.S. military presence in the country.
Both countries launched joint maritime and air patrols late last month.
China accused the US of interfering in waters far from its coast and increasing regional tensions, following the navigation of the USS Giffords, a littoral combat ship designed to operate in coastal areas.
“The United States has deliberately disrupted the situation in the South China Sea, seriously violated China’s sovereignty and security, seriously undermined regional peace and stability, and seriously violated international law and basic norms governing international relations, in full it is shown that the United States poses the greatest threat. to peace and stability in the South China Sea,” read the statement from the Southern Theater of the Chinese Armed Forces.
China claims sovereignty over virtually all reefs and other outcrops in the South China Sea and has turned some of them into islands with airstrips that can be used by its military.
Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also claim to be the legitimate owners of territories in the same waters, in a complex network of overlapping claims.
Source: DN
