The top American military commander in the Indo-Pacific region says the U.S. will maintain the recent pace of freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea aimed at challenging China’s territorial claims.
Chief of U.S. Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson told reporters in Tokyo that U.S. Navy ships will continue to operate freely in international waters, including the possibility of an aircraft carrier navigating through the Taiwan Strait.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters on Monday that China dispatched planes and ships to demand that the guided-missile destroyer McCampbell leave waters around the Paracel Islands.
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