China’s military said on Thursday it had expelled a US warship that had “illegally” entered the waters of a Beijing-controlled archipelago in the South China Sea.
The destroyer USS Milius “illegally” entered “without the permission of the Chinese authorities” in the waters of the Paracels today, Tian Junli, spokesman for the Chinese army’s southern area of operations, said in a brief statement.
“Navy and air forces were mobilized to track and watch this vessel, issue a warning and force it to leave the area”he underlined.
The spokesman denounced a North American maneuver that “endangers peace and stability in the South China Sea” and assured that the The military “remains vigilant and will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard China’s national sovereignty.”
This incident takes place in the context of a struggle for influence between Beijing and Washington in this maritime zone and of strong rivalry in several other files: Taiwan, [rede social] TikTok, rights of Uyghur minorities or even trade.
Contacted by the AFP, the US Armed Forces for the Asia-Pacific Zone did not immediately respond.
The Paracels, an archipelago equidistant from the Chinese and Vietnamese coasts, is disputed by Beijing and Hanoi. The Chinese navy regained control of all the islands in 1974, after a naval conflict.
China claims to have been the first country to discover and name the islands in the South China Sea, through which much of the trade between Asia and the rest of the world now passes.
In this way, the Chinese government claims a large part of the islands in this sea area. But other countries, such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, also claim sovereignty over some of these places.
Each country controls several islands and atolls, namely in the Spratleys Archipelago, further south, where incidents are much more common than in the Paracels.
The United States and sometimes some of its Western allies regularly conduct so-called “freedom of navigation” operations in the South China Sea, sending warships into the area to challenge Chinese claims.
Over the past decade, Beijing has gained control of some of the islands and atolls in this maritime region through expansion works and the construction of military installations, visible in satellite photos released by Western media.
Source: DN
