Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea as its sovereign territory and has in recent years stepped up its efforts to assert its dominance over the source-rich waters, transforming a string of obscure reefs and atolls into strongly fortified man-made islands and the increase their marine activity in the region.
China’s territorial ambitions are being challenged by at least five other countries, and have been legitimately rejected by Washington, which has declared Beijing’s claims illegal under international law.
A U.S. Defense Department official told CNN that the Chinese military on Wednesday launched four medium-range missiles from mainland China. The missiles were in the northern range of the South China Sea between Hainan Island and the Paracel Islands, known as the Xisha Islands in China, the official said.
‘Confirm or Deny’
Senior Colonel Wu Qian, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense, said Thursday that China had drilled water and airspace between Qingdao in northeastern China and the disputed Spratly Islands – known as Nansha in China – in the south. -Chinese Sea, but did not name the rockets directly.
According to Wu, the exercises “did not target the country.”
Although the Chinese Ministry of Defense has not confirmed the missile tests, the Chinese government has made several detailed references to the launches, with references to reports in overseas media.
Those reports said the missiles involved were DF-21D and DF-26 missiles, both of which were used in Chinese propaganda as highly accurate and capable of hitting ships moving at sea.
The editors added that China “should step up its actions in the waters thereafter to suppress US arrogance and reinforce the American notion that China has no fear of war.”
The home to vital international shipping routes, the South China Sea is widely regarded as a potential flashpoint for a military conflict between the US and China.
The US has increased its naval activity in the region in recent months, by conducting routine patrols, referred to as freedom of navigation operations. On Thursday, a destroyer of guided missiles sailed within 12 nautical miles of the Chinese Paracel Islands.
At a news conference on Thursday, U.S. Vice Admin Scott Conn, commander of the U.S. Navy’s Third Fleet, spoke about the U.S. Navy’s presence in the region and its ability to respond to Chinese threats.
“As far as the launch of ballistic missiles is concerned, the US Navy today has 38 ships underway in the Indo-Pacific region, including the South China Sea, and we continue to fly and sail and operate wherever international law allows us. committed to a free and open Indo-Pacific and reassure our allies and partners, ‘he said.
‘High level of refinement’
Although China’s drills were intended to send a message to opponents, they also provide a rare opportunity for observers to assess the country’s advanced military capabilities.
According to Carl Schuster, a retired U.S. Navy captain and former director of operations at the U.S. Pacific Joint Intelligence Center, Wednesday’s missile tests showed high sophistication, due to the involvement of two separate military branches, the Navy. of the People’s Liberation Army (PLAN) and its Strategic Rocket Force (SRF).
“This rocket launch indicates that China is very close or is in the process of establishing procedures for coordinated fleet SRF anti-ship ballistic missile attacks,” he said. That echoes remarks in Chinese state media that Beijing was developing what it called a “complete system”, with planes, satellites and ships at sea to monitor the movements of enemy ships and pass information to the missiles so they can adjust their trajectories during their last attack phase.
Schuster also noted that the missiles were fired in an area where Chinese naval vessels were likely to operate, indicating a high degree of confidence in the accuracy of the missiles.
More maneuvers are expected in the coming days. Beijing announced new exercises to begin on Saturday in the Yellow Sea and stretch through next Thursday.
They follow at least four exercises that were underway on Tuesday, when Beijing said it was approaching an American U-2 spy plane with an exercise off the north coast.
“The violation severely affected China’s normal exercises and training activities, and distorted air and maritime security rules of conduct between China and the United States, as well as relevant international practices,” said Wu, a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense.
A statement from the U.S. Pacific Air Force to CNN confirmed a U-2 flight – but said it has no rules in conflict.
“A U-2 exit was conducted in the Indo-Pacific area of operations and within the accepted international rules and regulations flying aircraft. Pacific Air Forces personnel will continue to fly and operate wherever international law allows it, at the time and pace of our choice, “the statement said.
CNN’s Barbara Starr, Ryan Browne, Shawn Deng and Amy Payne contributed to this report.
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