United States rejects Beijing’s claims to South China Sea

July 13 (UPI) — The United States on Monday rejected most Beijing’s maritime claims to the South China Sea, declaring a formal challenge to China’s control over the waters.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a statement saying the United States was strengthening its policy in a “vital, contentious” part of the region.

“We are making clear: Beijing’s claims to offshore resources across most of the South China Sea are completely unlawful, as is its campaign of bullying to control them,” Pompeo said.

China holds competing claims over much of the area alongside Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Brunei.

In his statement on Monday, Pompeo cited a 2016 ruling by the United Nations declaring that China had no grounds for the so-called Nine-Dash-Line maps that depict China’s claim to the area.

Pompeo said the United States would reject China’s claim to James Shoal, a small submerged bank off the coast of Malaysia, and any waters beyond a 12-nautical mile territorial sea derived from islands in the Spratly Islands, an archipelago between Vietnam and the Philippines.

The decision marks a departure the United States’ usual policy of avoiding judgments on maritime disputes in the area, where it holds no claims.

The statement also comes amid increased tension between the two countries as they have traded sanctions over human rights abuses by the Chinese government against Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang region.

Last week, both countries held naval military exercises in the area. The U.S. moved two aircraft carrier strike groups headed by the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS Nimitz into the region while the Chinese Navy conducted military drills around the Parcel Islands.