A U.S.
warship sailed near a disputed island in the South China Sea claimed by China,
Taiwan and Vietnam on Sunday in an operation meant to challenge the competing
claims of all three nations, a U.S. Defense Department official said.
The USS
Stethem, a guided-missile destroyer, sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton
Island, part of the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, the official said.
The
operation was first reported by Fox News on Sunday.
It was the
second "freedom-of-navigation operation," or "fonop,"
conducted during the presidency of Donald Trump, following a drill in late May
in which a U.S. warship sailed within 12 nautical miles of an artificial island
built up by China in the South China Sea.
China's
Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement the U.S. ship had made an
unauthorized entry into China's territorial waters.
The
operation was a "serious political and military provocation," said
the statement, issued late on Sunday, citing ministry spokesman Lu Kang. It
said China had sent battle ships and fighter jets to warn off the Stethem.
"China
strongly urges the U.S. side to immediately stop this kind of provocative
action which seriously violates China's sovereignty and puts at risk China's
security," Lu said. China would take all necessary measures to defend
itself, he said.
Chinese
state-run tabloid the Global Times said in an editorial on Monday the United
States was playing political games in the South China Sea and such patrols
would not stop Chinese construction work there.
"U.S.
provocations cannot change the present situation in the South China Sea,"
it said.
Twelve
nautical miles marks the territorial limits recognized internationally. Sailing
within those 12 miles is meant to show that the United States does not
recognize territorial claims there.
"Unlike
in the Spratlys, where China has created new artificial territory in the last
several years, it has effectively controlled the Paracels since 1974,"
said Mira Rapp-Hooper, a South China Sea expert at the Center for a New
American Security. "It claims illegal straight baselines around the
Paracels, and the fonop may have been contesting these."
The Paracels
are also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. China fully occupied the Paracels in
1974 after forcing the navy of the-then South Vietnam off its holdings.
Trump has
heaped praise on Chinese President Xi Jinping, but his administration has also
stepped up pressure on Beijing as he has become frustrated that China has not
done more to pressure North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs.
On Thursday,
the administration imposed sanctions on two Chinese citizens and a shipping company
for helping North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, and accused a Chinese
bank of laundering money for Pyongyang.
The Trump
administration has also approved an arms package for Taiwan worth about $1.4
billion, the State Department said last week. China deems Taiwan its own and
has never renounced the use of force to bring the self-ruled island under its
control.
Trump is due
to speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
on Sunday, ahead of meetings he will hold with both leaders on the sidelines of
the Group of 20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, next Friday and Saturday.
REUTERS*
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