The warning came after the US Pacific Fleet said that its guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville had sailed near the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea to challenge what it described as Beijing's “excessive maritime claims.”
Beijing has lodged a protest against a US navy ship sailing close to the disputed islands in the South China Sea, according to Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang.
He said that the US ship had entered Chinese waters without permission and that Beijing had made its position known with its “stern representations”.
Geng added that the Chinese military “had sent its ships to watch the US vessel and to warn it to leave the area.”
US Voices Opposition to China's Military Steps in South China Sea
“Beijing urges the American side to immediately stop such provocative actions, which violate China's sovereignty and threaten security,” he underscored.
Earlier on Friday, US Navy Commander Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the US Pacific Fleet, told CNN that the guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville “sailed near the Paracel Islands to challenge excessive maritime claims and preserve access to the waterways, as governed by international law.
Christensen added that the Chancellorsville conducted what is referred to as a “Freedom of Navigation Operation” in the vicinity of the Paracel Islands to challenge claims made by China. He noted that the US warship was shadowed by a Chinese vessel but that all…