

It has pressed ahead to unilaterally occupy key islands and reefs. GFEADjogYD- Global Times February 9, 2021ĭespite protests from its maritime neighbors and a 2016 international ruling rejecting its claims, Beijing asserts sovereignty over 90% of the South China Sea, through which trillions in trade flows each year. 7 th Fleet.Ĭhina will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security, Chinese FM spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in response to the US' dual carrier operations in the South China Sea on Tuesday. Navy's ability to operate in challenging environments," according to a statement from the U.S. In the latest operation, ships and aircraft from carrier strike groups led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Nimitz "coordinated operations in a highly trafficked area to demonstrate the U.S. and China, as the two powers struggle to sort out a number of thorny issues ranging from trade and intellectual property theft to Beijing's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Tuesday's announcement also comes amid historically strained relations between the U.S. McCain conducted operations in the vicinity of the Paracel Islands, a disputed archipelago in the region claimed by China, Vietnam and Taiwan. The move - a show of strength apparently meant to signal the new administration's determination to stand firm against China's steady encroachment in the strategic waterway - comes just days after the destroyer USS John S. Navy announced Tuesday that a pair of carrier strike groups were conducting exercises in the South China Sea. In an apparent signal to Beijing, the U.S. Seaman Deirdre Marsac/USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) Aircraft assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 fly over the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group and the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group in the South China Sea on Tuesday.
