USS John S. McCain 'Expelled' From South China Sea, Claims Chinese Military

[Boats]

USS John S. McCain 'Expelled' From South China Sea, Claims Chinese Military
By: Jonn Feng - Newsweek News - 12-23-20
Re: https://www.newsweek.com/uss-john-s-...6875?piano_t=1

The Chinese military said it "expelled" the USS John S. McCain from the South China Sea after the U.S. Navy destroyer "trespassed" in the disputed waters of the Spratly Islands.

China claims historic rights over almost all of the islands in the South China Sea and their surrounding waters. In 2016, it rejected a Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling stating the opposite.

The U.S. Navy warship sailed by Gaven Reef and Johnson South Reef, the official added. Both contested reefs are claimed by China and contain PLA military fortification.

The South China Sea Probing Initiative, a Beijing-based think tank tracking U.S. Navy and Air Force activity, reported the Chinese warship as a Type 054A frigate.

It was the ninth time in 2020 the U.S. Navy had conducted "freedom of navigation" operations near Chinese-controlled reefs, representing a five-year high, SCSPI said.

While China has accused the U.S. of trespassing and undermining security in the South China Sea, the U.S. Navy claims it is exercising its navigational rights in accordance with international law.

Reefs in the Spratly Islands are claimed not only by China, but also Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines, among others.

The USS John S. McCain conducted the freedom of navigation operation in order to challenge "restrictions on innocent passage imposed by China, Vietnam, and Taiwan," the Seventh Fleet said in a statement on Tuesday.

Photo link: https://d.newsweek.com/en/full/16913...230d7fc1f99e3c
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain transits through South China Sea on December 22, 2020. By: MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS MARKUS CASTANEDA/U.S. NAVY

It continued: "Unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose a serious threat to the freedom of the seas, including the freedoms of navigation and overflight, free trade and unimpeded commerce, and freedom of economic opportunity for South China Sea littoral nations.

"The United States upholds freedom of navigation as a principle. As long as some countries continue to assert maritime claims that are inconsistent with international law as reflected in the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention and that purport to restrict unlawfully the rights and freedoms guaranteed to all States, the United States will continue to defend those rights and freedoms. No member of the international community should be intimidated or coerced into giving up their rights and freedoms."

The latest maritime dispute comes two days after China's domestic aircraft carrier Shandong alarmed observers by sailing to the South China Sea via the narrow Taiwan Strait.

Shandong had transited the strait—just 80 miles wide at its narrowest point—only once before, on December 26, 2019, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said.

On Saturday, the Chinese Navy followed the USS Mustin as it made a similar transit through the Taiwan Strait.

Escalating military tensions have in the region have led to an increased risk of conflict in the South China Sea, SCSPI told Newsweek last week.