China accused the United States of a “serious military provocation” late Sunday after an American warship sailed close to a disputed island in the South China Sea.
The USS Stethem, a guided-missile destroyer, sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island in the Paracel Islands, a US Defence Department official said.
The tiny piece of land less than one mile in length is administered by China, but like many islands in the South China Sea is also claimed by other countries, in this instance Taiwan and Vietnam.
Twelve nautical miles marks the territorial limits recognised internationally. Sailing within those 12 miles is meant to show that the US does not recognise territorial claims there.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the US ship had made an unauthorised entry into China’s territorial waters and called it a “serious political and military provocation.”
The statement said China had sent battle ships and fighter jets to warn off the Stethem.
China’s Defence Ministry said Monday that the US action had seriously damaged peace and stability in the South China Sea.
“The US conduct seriously damages strategic trust between the two sides and seriously damages the political atmosphere of the development of China-US military relations,” the ministry said, without elaborating.Political gamesChinese state-run tabloid the Global Times said in an editorial on Monday the United States was playing political games in the South China Sea and such patrols would not stop Chinese construction work there.
“US provocations cannot change the present situation in the South China Sea,” it said.
“Unlike in the Spratlys, where China has created new artificial territory in the last several years, it has effectively controlled the Paracels since 1974,” said Mira Rapp-Hooper, a South China Sea expert at the Center for a New American Security. “It claims illegal straight baselines around the Paracels, and the fonop may have been contesting these.”
The Paracels are also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. China fully occupied the Paracels in 1974 after forcing the navy of the-then South Vietnam off its holdings.
Trump has heaped praise on Chinese President Xi Jinping, but his administration has also stepped up pressure on Beijing as he has become frustrated that China has not done more to pressure North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs.
On Thursday, the administration imposed sanctions on two Chinese citizens and a shipping company for helping North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, and accused a Chinese bank of laundering money for Pyongyang.
The Trump administration has also approved an arms package for Taiwan worth about $1.4bn, the State Department said last week. China deems Taiwan its own and has never renounced the use of force to bring the self-ruled island under its control.
Thursday, June 04, 2026
