Pindi Boy
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Two US B-52 bombers have flown over the vicinity of China-built artificial islands in the #SouthChinaSea, said the Pentagon on Thursday, despite China's strong sovereignty claims.
The aircraft flew around the Nansha Islands on Sunday afternoon, according to a US military spokesman.
The Pentagon spokesman, Peter Cook, told the Telegraph that such flights were indeed made by US military planes, and that their mission continued despite being warned by Chinese ground controllers.
"My understanding is there was one B-52 flight, I'm not even sure the date on it, but there was an effort made by Chinese ground controllers to reach out to the aircraft and that aircraft continued its mission unchanged,” said Cook.
The move follows a recent challenge to China's territorial claims on South China Sea by sending the USS Lassen, a guided-missile destroyer to patrol within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands built by China along the Nansha Islands last month.
China has repeatedly affirmed its sovereign claims over the South China Sea, and expressed strong discontentment and resolute opposition to US's patrol.
Despite the claims of “freedom of navigation” from the US, which would allow ships and planes of any country to freely be in the South China Sea area, China said that the country is strongly against any kind of efforts, in the name of freedom of navigation that may damage the interests of the littoral states.
China has also urged the US not to continue down the wrong path.
“If the US side does continue, we'll take all necessary measures needed,” said Yang Yujun, the spokesman of the Chinese Defense Ministry at a regular press conference last month.
Military expert Zhang Junshe said in an interview that, if the US continued to patrol the air and sea in the vicinity of the Nansha Islands, China should strengthen its defense forces and maritime military deployment on the South China Sea, increasing the patrolling of Chinese military warships and aircrafts in the area for example.
The aircraft flew around the Nansha Islands on Sunday afternoon, according to a US military spokesman.
The Pentagon spokesman, Peter Cook, told the Telegraph that such flights were indeed made by US military planes, and that their mission continued despite being warned by Chinese ground controllers.
"My understanding is there was one B-52 flight, I'm not even sure the date on it, but there was an effort made by Chinese ground controllers to reach out to the aircraft and that aircraft continued its mission unchanged,” said Cook.
The move follows a recent challenge to China's territorial claims on South China Sea by sending the USS Lassen, a guided-missile destroyer to patrol within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands built by China along the Nansha Islands last month.
China has repeatedly affirmed its sovereign claims over the South China Sea, and expressed strong discontentment and resolute opposition to US's patrol.
Despite the claims of “freedom of navigation” from the US, which would allow ships and planes of any country to freely be in the South China Sea area, China said that the country is strongly against any kind of efforts, in the name of freedom of navigation that may damage the interests of the littoral states.
China has also urged the US not to continue down the wrong path.
“If the US side does continue, we'll take all necessary measures needed,” said Yang Yujun, the spokesman of the Chinese Defense Ministry at a regular press conference last month.
Military expert Zhang Junshe said in an interview that, if the US continued to patrol the air and sea in the vicinity of the Nansha Islands, China should strengthen its defense forces and maritime military deployment on the South China Sea, increasing the patrolling of Chinese military warships and aircrafts in the area for example.
