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| PLAN Warships on patrol in the South China Sea (File Photo) |
Kirk Spitzer
USA Today
ABOARD THE USS JOHN C. STENNIS — When U.S. commanders kicked off a major international naval exercise this week, they found an uninvited guest: A Chinese Navy warship.
But it was no surprise.
Warships from the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) have begun to routinely shadow U.S. Navy ships through much of the region.
U.S. commanders said Wednesday Chinese warships closely followed the powerful USS John C. Stennis carrier strike group from nearly the minute it entered the disputed South China Sea on a regular patrol in early March.
“We did see PLAN ships quite routinely throughout the South China Sea. In fact, we were in constant visual contact with at least one PLAN ship at any one time, 24/7,” said Rear Adm. Marcus Hitchcock, commander of the Stennis strike group.
That’s a major departure from recent years and seems to provide further evidence of China’s increasingly assertive behavior in the region.
Twice in the last week, PLAN warships have sailed into or alongside Japanese territorial waters, including those around the disputed Senkaku Islands, in the East China Sea. That’s sparked protests from Japan, one of America’s closest allies.
Read the full story at DefenseNews