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| Chinese Maritime Patrol Ship Haixun 31 (File Photo) |
China on Thursday sent an oceangoing patrol vessel equipped with a helipad to the South China Sea, the first of its kind to be put into service there.
The country recently enacted a controversial law allowing maritime authorities to inspect vessels from other countries navigating in the South China Sea, which China claims as its territory. Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims to the region's islands and atolls.
The vessel, Haixun 21, will be under the administration of the Hainan Maritime Safety Administration.
Read the full story at Want China Times