The US Navy has reacted to Beijing's claims over the South China Sea. Beijing earlier said it drove away a US Navy destroyer from the South China waters to which the US 7th Fleet was quick to issue an angry reaction, saying that the same warship was sailing through the waters as a challenge to the claims made by China, reported CNN.
In an official statement, the 7th Fleet spokesperson Lt. jg. Luka Bakic said, "The guided-missile destroyer USS Milius asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the South China Sea near the Paracel Islands, consistent with international law," as quoted by CNN.
According to Bakic, the warship of the US Navy carried out a "freedom of navigation operation" in the region. Bakic further added that the exercise was conducted to "challenge the restrictions on innocent passage imposed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan, and Vietnam," reported CNN.
These three countries asserted their claims and rights over the Paracel Islands which are also called the Xishas in China. It is an amalgamation of around 130 small atolls where the biggest bases are claimed by the Chinese military.
The US has also challenged Beijing's claims over “straight baselines enclosing the Paracels.”
According to a CNN report, this means a direct challenge to Beijing over its claims on the waters between the islands, even while the waters lie outside the purview of the internationally recognised 12-nautical-mile limit.
Notably, China has always staked claims on almost all parts of the South China Sea and has already militarized these regions.
On Friday, China responded in a very angry manner to the US warship presence near the islands claimed by it. Spokesperson of the Chinese Defence Ministry Tan Kefei said, "The actions of the U.S. military have seriously violated China’s sovereignty and security and seriously violated international law," as quoted by CNN.
Tan further said, "The guided-missile destroyer USS Milius broke into China’s Xisha territorial waters again without the approval of the Chinese government, undermining peace and stability in the South China Sea," reported CNN.
It is pertinent to note that China keeps making such statements on a regular basis against the US Navy operations in the South China Sea which could cause friction in the region.
Reacting to this, Washington said in an official statement, “The operations demonstrate that the United States will fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows – regardless of the location of excessive maritime claims and regardless of current events,” as quoted by CNN.