BEIJING: Chinese defence ministry said on Friday that its navy drew away USS Milius, a guided-missile destroyer, that had entered its territorial waters in the South China Sea near the Paracel Islands.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of National Defence said that “We sternly demand the US to immediately stop such provocative acts, otherwise, it would bear the serious consequences of unforeseen incidents.”
US navy’s stance
The US navy said the guided-missile destroyer was asserting its navigational rights and freedoms.
It said that “unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose a threat to the freedom of the seas, also including the freedoms of navigation and overflight, trade and unimpeded commerce, and freedom of economic opportunity for South China Sea littoral nations.”
The US navy said its forces operate in the South China Sea daily.
It was the second straight day of the stand-off between the two superpowers amid a growing tussle in the South China Sea.
China claims huge swathes of the place overlap with exclusive economic zones of several countries, including the Philippines. Trillions of dollars in trade flow annually through the waterway.
