batmannow
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Tuesday March 10, 6:29 PM
China tells US to stop 'illegal' naval activities
BEIJING (AFP) -
China on Tuesday demanded the United States cease what it called illegal activities in the South China Sea, as it rejected Pentagon assertions that Chinese vessels harassed a US Navy ship there. Foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said US complaints that five Chinese ships had harassed a US Navy ship in the South China Sea were "totally inaccurate." "The US Navy ship Impeccable broke international law and Chinese laws and regulations," Ma told reporters in a news briefing. "China has made solemn representations to the United States requesting that the US immediately stop these activities and take effective measures to avoid similar activities in the future."
The United States said it had formally protested to Chinese authorities over Sunday's incident in the South China Sea, about 75 miles (120 kilometres) south of China's Hainan Island in international waters. The dispute added a new dimension to fragile military relations between the world powers, which had enjoyed a brief period of slight optimism after the two held defence talks in Beijing last month. The Pentagon said the incident saw Chinese boats move directly in front of the Impeccable, forcing it to take emergency action to avoid a collision, and then dropped pieces of wood into its path. "This was a reckless, dangerous manoeuvre that was unprofessional" and violated international law, Defence Department spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters on Monday. Ma rejected that account, saying it was "absolutely unacceptable to China," although he did not provide an alternative version. The Impeccable is a surveillance vessel designed to support anti-submarine warfare. Ma said it violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea but declined to answer when repeatedly asked to specify exactly which part of the convention was broken. The Chinese vessels included a navy intelligence ship, a government fisheries patrol vessel, a state oceanographic patrol boat and two small trawlers, the Pentagon said. Whitman said one of the Chinese ships came within 25 feet (7.5 metres) of the Impeccable and that the Chinese crew tried to snag the cables that tow the ship's underwater sonars. The White House demanded China respect international maritime law and said it would keep up naval operations in the area. Beijing has long expressed its dissatisfaction with US surveillance operations by having Chinese ships and planes approach US naval ships in what it considers an "economic exclusion zone". The incident followed "increasingly aggressive conduct by Chinese vessels" in the past week -- with Chinese boats steaming near US ships and aircraft flying low overhead, the Pentagon's statement said. The stand-off came after China and the United States agreed at last month's talks to resume high-level military exchanges cut off last year by China amid anger over a proposed US arms package to Beijing's diplomatic rival Taiwan. Military ties were also strained in 2001 after the mid-air collision of a US surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet in the same area. The collision killed the Chinese jet's pilot and the US plane was forced to make an emergency landing on Hainan. The 24-member US crew were held by China for 11 days.
China tells US to stop 'illegal' naval activities
BEIJING (AFP) -
China on Tuesday demanded the United States cease what it called illegal activities in the South China Sea, as it rejected Pentagon assertions that Chinese vessels harassed a US Navy ship there. Foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said US complaints that five Chinese ships had harassed a US Navy ship in the South China Sea were "totally inaccurate." "The US Navy ship Impeccable broke international law and Chinese laws and regulations," Ma told reporters in a news briefing. "China has made solemn representations to the United States requesting that the US immediately stop these activities and take effective measures to avoid similar activities in the future."
The United States said it had formally protested to Chinese authorities over Sunday's incident in the South China Sea, about 75 miles (120 kilometres) south of China's Hainan Island in international waters. The dispute added a new dimension to fragile military relations between the world powers, which had enjoyed a brief period of slight optimism after the two held defence talks in Beijing last month. The Pentagon said the incident saw Chinese boats move directly in front of the Impeccable, forcing it to take emergency action to avoid a collision, and then dropped pieces of wood into its path. "This was a reckless, dangerous manoeuvre that was unprofessional" and violated international law, Defence Department spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters on Monday. Ma rejected that account, saying it was "absolutely unacceptable to China," although he did not provide an alternative version. The Impeccable is a surveillance vessel designed to support anti-submarine warfare. Ma said it violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea but declined to answer when repeatedly asked to specify exactly which part of the convention was broken. The Chinese vessels included a navy intelligence ship, a government fisheries patrol vessel, a state oceanographic patrol boat and two small trawlers, the Pentagon said. Whitman said one of the Chinese ships came within 25 feet (7.5 metres) of the Impeccable and that the Chinese crew tried to snag the cables that tow the ship's underwater sonars. The White House demanded China respect international maritime law and said it would keep up naval operations in the area. Beijing has long expressed its dissatisfaction with US surveillance operations by having Chinese ships and planes approach US naval ships in what it considers an "economic exclusion zone". The incident followed "increasingly aggressive conduct by Chinese vessels" in the past week -- with Chinese boats steaming near US ships and aircraft flying low overhead, the Pentagon's statement said. The stand-off came after China and the United States agreed at last month's talks to resume high-level military exchanges cut off last year by China amid anger over a proposed US arms package to Beijing's diplomatic rival Taiwan. Military ties were also strained in 2001 after the mid-air collision of a US surveillance aircraft and a Chinese fighter jet in the same area. The collision killed the Chinese jet's pilot and the US plane was forced to make an emergency landing on Hainan. The 24-member US crew were held by China for 11 days. 
