The USS Stethem sailed in the South China Sea near a disputed island claimed by China on Sunday, provoking the country, two U.S. defense officials told Fox News.
It was the second time since President Donald Trump has been in office that the U.S. Navy has sent a warship near Triton Island, which is part of the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, said Fox News. The USS Stethem sailed within 12 nautical miles of the island.
The U.S. guided-missile destroyer, which is based in Japan, was tailed by a Chinese warship while passing by the island, the defense officials said.
The 12 nautical miles reference was important because it is the territorial boundary that extends beyond the shores of all nations and sailing inside that distance sends a signal the United States does not recognize that country's claim.
An official told Fox News that the Pentagon wants to conduct what it calls "freedom of navigation" operations, or FONOPS, to challenge China's claims with enough frequency that it becomes more routine and not as newsworthy.
But Chinese officials cried foul, charging that the United States entered waters claimed by China, according to a Foreign Affairs Ministry statement.
"Under the pretext of 'navigation freedom,' the U.S. side once again sent a military vessel into China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands without China's approval," the Chinese said.
"Its behavior has violated the Chinese law and relevant international law, infringed upon China's sovereignty, disrupted peace, security and order of the relevant waters and put in jeopardy the facilities and personnel on the Chinese islands, and thus constitutes a serious political and military provocation. The Chinese side is dissatisfied with and opposed to the relevant behavior of the U.S. side."
The BBC News reported that in May, the USS Dewey sailed less than 12 nautical miles from an artificial island built by China called Mischief Reef, which is part of the Spratly Islands. U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis said later that the United States would not accept China's militarization of man-made islands in the region.
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