US warship approaches Ren'ai Reef
This exacerbates the relationship between the US and China: just a few weeks after the meeting between Biden and Xi, China accuses the US of having invaded areas in the South China Sea claimed by Beijing with a ship. However, this is not recognized internationally.
According to the Chinese military, a US warship has sailed into the waters near Ren'ai Reef in the South China Sea. "The US has seriously undermined peace and stability in the region," said a spokesman for the South China Operations Center. He spoke of an "illegal" action. Washington was "deliberately" stirring up tensions in the South China Sea. However, the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague declared some of China's claims to the South China Sea illegal in 2016. China does not recognize the ruling.
The incident represents "a serious violation of China's sovereignty and security", the country added. The Chinese People's Liberation Army had mobilized naval forces to track and monitor the US ship "USS Gabrielle Giffords". Its troops in the region are on high alert at all times in order to resolutely defend national sovereignty. The USA has not yet issued a statement.
The disputed reef, also known as Second Thomas Shoal, is located around 200 kilometers from the Philippine island of Palawan and more than a thousand kilometers from the Chinese island of Hainan.
Hopes of rapprochement between the superpowers fizzled out?
Beijing regularly criticizes the passage of US warships, for example through the strait between Taiwan and China or in the South China Sea. Following the meeting between US President Joe Biden and China's head of state and party leader Xi Jinping in mid-November, there was hope of a rapprochement between the two superpowers.
China is also at loggerheads with several of its neighbors over its far-reaching claims to territorial waters in the South China Sea, which it practically claims for itself. On Sunday, the Philippine Coast Guard dispatched two of its ships to the South China Sea after observing an "alarming" presence of Chinese naval vessels on a reef in the country's exclusive economic zone. In addition to the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam also lay claim to parts of the sea area, which is of enormous strategic and economic importance to the littoral states.
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The incident involving the US warship near Ren'ai Reef in the South China Sea, claimed by China, has further strained relations between the USA and China. Following the meeting between President Biden and Xi Jinping, China's head of state and party leader, the Philippines also expressed concerns, dispatching their Coast Guard to monitor Chinese naval vessels in their exclusive economic zone within the South China Sea.
Source: www.ntv.de
