U.S. Navy warships have sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Seas, amid heightened aggression between two of the worlds largest military nations. The busy waterway is just one of several flash points between both the U.S.and China and is caused mainly by recent U.S. sanctions levied against both Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Earlier this week during high-level talks, China had already told the U.S. military to cease strengthening its forces in the South China Sea and adding "new uncertainties" over democratic Taiwan, which is claimed by #China.
The U.S. #Navy frequently aggravates China by holding maneuvers near to some of the islands occupied by China, in an apparent effort to assert freedom of access within what they say are #international #waterways.
The U.S Navy’s Seventh Fleet on two separate occasions this week has sent both the combat ship Gabrielle Giffords and the destroyer Wayne E. Meyer to within 12 nautical miles of Mischief Reef, the closest confrontation the two military powers have had for some months
The reasons for the sudden escalation in the tensions between the two military forces come at a time when China asserts more of its power within most of the energy-rich seascapes of the South China Seas, an area where it has built outposts on artificial islands Chinese engineers have constructed in the area.
China and the United States are not alone in claiming parts of the South China Seas, #Malaysia, #Brunei, the Philippines, #Taiwan and #Vietnam also claim several regions themselves.
Another reason for the sudden escalation in #military might has become quite obvious, and that is the recent discovery of extensive oil and gas reserves hidden at the bottom of the South China Seas.
Steve Simmonds
Worldwide Breaking News