Freedom of navigation"Freedom of navigation operations serve to protect the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea and airspace guaranteed to all nations under international law," a Pentagon spokesman, Commander Bill Urban, told DPA news agency on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, a US official told AFP news agency that the US Navy will send more warships to sail close to the artificial islands.
The Philippines, which has filed an arbitration case with the United Nations questioning China's sweeping claims over the sea, led US allies in the region in hailing the warship's passage through the disputed waters.
"I think everybody would welcome a balance of power anywhere in the world," Philippine President Benigno Aquino said.
China has been on a reclamation and construction spree in the disputed South China Sea despite objections by other claimants, including the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, a key shipping lane, with overlapping claims to the sea's potentially rich mineral resources.
Source: Agencies
aljazeera.com
Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=81259.0