WASHINGTON: US military warships sailed near South China Sea islands on Sunday, US officials said, in a move that drew condemnation from Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.
The operation became the brand new try and counter what Washington sees as Beijing’s efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.
even as this operation had been deliberate months in advance, and comparable operations have end up habitual, it comes at a specifically sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a primary US-hosted naval drill.
the united states officers stated the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, got here inside 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its pals.