US warship sails near South China Sea
An American warship has sailed through waters off the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, the Pentagon said on Sunday, in the latest implicit challenge to Beijing's sweeping territorial claims in the region.
"Guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur conducted a freedom of navigation operation," an official told AFP. "Decatur sailed within 12 nautical miles of Gaven and Johnson reefs in the Spratly Islands."
The official said all United States military operations in the area "are designed in accordance with international law and demonstrate that the United States will fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows".
