Beijing accuses the US that a ship has entered its waters unauthorized. China sent naval forces on Tuesday to monitor the warship.
The maritime vessel was moving through a disputed area in the South China Sea, while further north a confrontation was taking place between Taiwan and a Chinese ship.
The South Command of the Chinese army has declared that the American ship “USS Charleston” has “illegally entered”, without Beijing’s approval, the waters near the Spratly Islands, in the early hours of the day.
“The US action violates the sovereign rights and interests of China, endangers maritime security, and harms regional peace and stability. The American side should immediately cease such activities”, the Chinese conveyed.
Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea as its own territory, despite the fact that countries such as the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam have access to it, according to hotnews.ro.
The American army has not commented on the incident, while the Filipino military has stated that the American ship was transiting international waters and did not enter Chinese territory.
The Philippines has concluded a mutual defense treaty with the USA and disputes with China over the sovereignty of the Spratly Islands.
The Coast Guard of Taiwan specified that its vessel “Taichung” was dispatched to warn the Chinese ship to move away, while the two sides were exchanging messages with each other.
According to the Taiwan Coast Guard, the Chinese ship radioed that “the so-called Republic of China does not exist,” referring to the official name of Taiwan. In response, the Taiwanese ship transmitted that “The Republic of China, Taiwan, is a sovereign and independent country.” The Taiwan Coast Guard added that the dispute was still ongoing.