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The Washington military vessels come just days after Beijing imposed a law requiring foreign vessels to give notice before entering waters claimed by China.
Also read: China passes new maritime law, US sends destroyer to South China Sea
“The guided-missile destroyer USS Benfold asserts the right and freedom of navigation within 12 nautical miles of Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands,” the US Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement.
Meanwhile, according to the US Navy, the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson and its fighter group are training elsewhere in the region.
The entire Spratly Islands chain is claimed by China. However, Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei also claim some of them.
The spokesman for the US Navy’s 7th Fleet, Lt. Mark Langford, told Stars and Stripes that no warship has given notice to any country that has a claim in the South China Sea.
On Wednesday, China’s military issued a statement saying the USS Benfold entered the territorial waters without Beijing’s permission. They claim to have tracked, monitored, and alerted the American destroyer.
The statement, delivered by Colonel Tian Junli of the Southern Theater Command, said Beijing has indisputable sovereignty over the islands. He also called the US a security risk maker in the South China Sea and the biggest destroyer of regional peace and stability.
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