TLTP
\nWASHINGTON
\nThe US military has warned that its warships would be \u201cmore assertive\u201d in responding to violations of international law, citing in particular Beijing, which it accused of having expansionist ambitions in the South China Sea.
\nIn a document setting objectives for the US Navy, Marines and Coast Guard for the coming years, the Pentagon said on Thursday that several countries, notably Russia and China \u201care contesting the balance of power in key regions and seeking to undermine the existing world order\u201d.
\n\u201cOur globally deployed naval forces interact with Chinese and Russian warships and aircraft daily,\u201d the document said, noting their \u201cgrowing aggressiveness\u201d and calling China \u201cthe most pressing, long-term strategic threat\u201d.
\nThe latest incident between the US and China naval forces took place in late August when Beijing said it had driven an American warship from the disputed Paracel archipelago.
\nChina claims almost all of the islands of the South China Sea, territorial claims disputed by other countries in the region including Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei.
\nChina\u2019s claim has also been rejected by the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague, but it has continued to build artificial islands and installed naval and air facilities.
\nTo counter China, the US has been sending ships to the region more frequently to carry out what it calls \u201cfreedom of navigation\u201d operations.
\nTo maintain a strategic advantage over the Chinese Navy whose \u201cbattle force has more than tripled in size in only two decades,\u201d the US Navy plans to modernise with smaller, more agile and even remotely piloted ships.
\nThe US ships will also \u201caccept calculated tactical risks and adopt a more assertive posture in our day-to-day operations,\u201d the statement said.
\n\u201cIn the past, our behaviour was de-escalation. We would turn away and would minimise risk in those individual contacts,\u201d he said, noting that the Navy \u201cmight be ceding ground\u201d with the approach.
\nThe Pentagon document specified that the US Navy will also be more visible in the Pacific, where it will \u201cdetect and document our rivals\u2019 actions that violate international law, steal resources, and infringe upon the sovereignty of other nations\u201d.
\nIn response, Beijing has accused the US of stirring conflict in the region, while also stepping up its diplomatic efforts to gain more support among the countries in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TLTP WASHINGTON The US military has warned that its warships would be \u201cmore assertive\u201d in responding to violations of international law, citing in particular Beijing, which it accused of having expansionist ambitions in the South China Sea. In a document setting objectives for the US Navy, Marines and Coast Guard for the coming years, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-162963","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n