U.S. and Chinese Naval Vessels Face Off Near Scarborough Shoal

U.S. and Chinese Naval Vessels Face Off Near Scarborough Shoal

NEWS Media Newsroom

American and Chinese naval forces clashed Wednesday near Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, according to U.S. Navy officials. The incident followed a Monday confrontation between Chinese vessels and the Philippine coast guard in the same region.

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) accused the USS Higgins, a guided missile destroyer, of “illegally intruding” into its territorial waters surrounding Scarborough Reef. The U.S. Navy rejected the claim, saying the destroyer was engaged in a freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) conducted “in accordance with international law.”

“USS Higgins conducted this FONOP in accordance with international law and then continued on to conduct normal operations,” U.S. Seventh Fleet spokesperson Commander Megan Greene said. “The United States is defending its right to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, as USS Higgins did here.”

The PLA’s Southern Theater Command issued a statement saying it tracked and expelled the U.S. warship, accusing Washington of undermining “peace and stability in the South China Sea,” according to Bloomberg.

Monday’s earlier incident saw two Chinese vessels collide while attempting to block a smaller Philippine coast guard ship. Chinese warships have also been operating farther into the Pacific—most notably in mid-July when a PLA vessel was spotted near Hawaii’s coastline.

The dispute is layered over complex territorial claims involving China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei, with the South China Sea serving as a vital artery for more than $3 trillion in maritime commerceannually.

Under the bilateral defense guidelines, the United States is obligated to defend the Philippines if its forces come under attack, including in the South China Sea.

China and Taiwan require military vessels to give advance notification before transiting their claimed territorial waters, a demand Washington calls a violation of international law.

“As long as some countries continue to claim and assert limits on rights that exceed their authority under international law, the United States will continue to defend the rights and freedoms of the sea guaranteed to all,” Greene said. “No member of the international community should be intimidated or coerced into giving up their rights and freedoms.”