China condemns US after warship sails near South China Sea reef

BEIJING // China on Thursday accused the US of trespassing after an American warship sailed near a reef claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea.

It was the first such operation by Donald Trump’s administration in the disputed waterway.

The row comes during a period of warming relations between the countries with the US president saying that Washington has dialed down pressure on Beijing over other issues in hopes of encouraging their cooperation on North Korea.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey entered the area "without permission from the Chinese government", foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a regular press briefing, adding that the ship had "trespassed in the waters near the relevant islands and reefs".

“The relevant action taken by the US vessel undermines China’s sovereignty and security interests, and is very likely to cause unexpected sea and air accidents,” he said, urging Washington to stop “provocative actions”.

The USS Dewey sailed less than 12 nautical miles from Mischief Reef – part of the Spratly Islands – on Thursday morning local time, a US official said, the first freedom of navigation operation under Mr Trump. The UN says nations can establish the breadth of their territorial sea up to a limit of 12 nautical miles.

China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, despite partial counter-claims from Taiwan and several southeast Asian nations including the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

It has rapidly built reefs into artificial islands capable of hosting military planes.

The US has challenged annexations of these islets and advocated for a diplomatic settlement to the disputes.

Meanwhile, Taiwan forces simulated an invasion by China on Thursday as part of live-fire war games against a backdrop of rising tensions with Beijing.

The annual drills are Taiwan’s biggest military exercise and mocked up a scenario in which Chinese troops launched an amphibious assault.

They took place on the outlying Penghu Islands, which sit in the strait that separates Taiwan from China.

The defence ministry has warned of a rising military threat from China, which still sees self-ruling Taiwan as part of its territory to be reunified, by force if necessary.

* Agence France-Presse