Alwaght- In yet another provocative move, the United States on Friday deployed more warships into the waters of the South China Sea to counter the presence of China.
According to US military officials, aircraft carrier John C. Stennis, two destroyers, two cruisers and a Japan-based US Seventh Fleet flagship have sailed into the contested waters of the South China Sea.
According to US Navy news releases during the past 24 hours, the USS Stennis cited ‘South China Sea’ on its dateline, with the crew busy conducting damage control drills and advancement exams.
The small armada traversed the area in late February, the same time when Japan's Murasame-class destroyer JDS Samidare visited it.
On February 4, the group crossed the International Date Line into the US Seventh Fleet's area of operations, a few weeks after its deployment from Washington in mid-January. The Washington Post reports that thousands of US sailors were also deployed to the area.
The disagreement between the US and China emerged the previous year when the latter was accused of beefing up its military presence in the South China Sea, which is an area claimed by at least six counties.
“In my opinion China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea,” US Pacific Command head, Admiral Harry Harris told lawmakers after reports in late February that Beijing sent an advanced surface-to-air missile battery to the Xisha (Paracel) Islands.
Chinese officials were quick to dismiss such claims. “The accusation can lead to a miscalculation of the situation,” said Fu Ying, a spokeswoman for China's National People's Congress, as cited by The South China Morning Post in a Friday report. “If you take a look at the matter closely, it’s the US sending the most advanced aircraft and military vessels to South China Sea.”
The carrier strike group deployment is the latest power display in the region. China has reiterated its sovereignty over nearly all of the energy-rich South China Sea, which is also claimed in part by Taiwan, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Washington has sided with China’s rivals in the territorial dispute, with Beijing accusing the US of meddling in the regional issues and deliberately stirring up tensions in the contested waters.
