US destroyer expelled after sailing into SCS

BEIJING: China said on Friday it expelled a US-guided missile destroyer from the South China Sea waters a day after the same warship passed through the Taiwan Strait, prompting a strong response from Beijing.

The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) southern theatre command issued a statement on Friday saying it deployed warships and aircraft to warn and drive away USS John S. McCain from near Xisha islands known as Paracel Islands in the West - in the SCS region.

The US Navy has said it was carrying out a lawful “freedom of navigation operation”.

Friday’s exchange is part of a war of words that has broken out between Beijing and Washington on the passage of the US warship through the region in the past 24 hours - the first such escalation of tensions since Joe Biden took over as president in January.

Four years of Donald Trump’s presidency saw increased tensions between the world powers over a range of issues, including disputes in the SCS region and Taiwan. China claims nearly the entire SCS, but that claim is disputed by several maritime neighbours including the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia, besides Vietnam and Taiwan.

Tian Junli, spokesperson of the command said the passage of the US warship “seriously” infringed on China’s sovereignty and security, undermined regional peace and stability, and deliberately disrupted the “good atmosphere” of peace, friendship, and cooperation in the SCS maritime zone.

In a statement, the US Navy said its warship was asserting international navigational rights in the SCS region. “On February 5 (local time), USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the vicinity of the Paracel Islands, consistent with international law,” Lieutenant Joe Keiley, the US Navy’s 7th Fleet spokesperson, said.

“This freedom of navigation operation upheld the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea recognised in international law by challenging the unlawful restrictions on innocent passage imposed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam and also by challenging China’s claim to straight baselines enclosing the Paracel Islands,” Keiley said.

The spokesperson added that China, Taiwan, and Vietnam each claim sovereignty over the Paracel Islands.