US runs freedom of navigation operation

A US navy warship carried out freedom of navigation operation yesterday near islands claimed by China and two other Asian countries in the South China Sea, US officials told Reuters.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur challenged "excessive maritime claims near the Paracel Islands," specifically Triton and Woody Islands, claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam, the US officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The destroyer sailed within waters claimed by China, but not within the 12-nautical-mile territorial limits of the islands, the officials said. The US military defines a freedom-of-navigation operation as one that challenges excessive maritime claims, officials said.

The Pentagon declined to comment. One official said the US destroyer was shadowed by three Chinese vessels and that all interactions were safe. The operation was first reported by Reuters.

It was the fourth challenge that the United States has made to what it considers overreaching maritime claims by China in the South China Sea in the past year, and the first since May.

China, Washington's main strategic rival in Asia, claims almost the entire South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion worth of trade passes each year. The United States has criticized Beijing's build-up of military facilities in the sea and expressed concerns they could be used to restrict free movement.

China has a runway on Woody Island, the site of the largest Chinese presence on the Paracels, and has placed surface-to-air missiles there, according to US officials.

In the last three US freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea within the last year, US warships cruised within 12 nautical miles of islands claimed by Beijing. The actions greatly angered China, which has accused the United States of stirring up trouble there.

The latest operation comes just after the volatile president of the Philippines announced his "separation" from Washington and realignment with China. The Philippines has been a key ally of the United States and a territorial rival of Beijing in the South China Sea.