A U.S guided missile warship was confronted by a Chinese warship in international waters last week in the South China Sea.
The incident happened December 5th in the wake of China’s declaration of a new Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
According to Reuters, the confrontation led to a “near-collision” between the two vessels.
The Washington Free Beacon reported that the USS Cowpens was ordered to stop, and when it refused the order–because it was in international waters–a Chinese Navy vessel “sailed in front of Cowpens and stopped, forcing the [U.S. vessel] to abruptly change course in what officials said was a dangerous maneuver.”
Pentagon officials warned that this type of confrontation would be more likely in light of China’s new ADIZ.
Most of the South China Sea is claimed by Beijing and “territorial disputes” with various other countries continue to feed tensions in the area.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins.
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