The U.S. Navy on Tuesday dismissed Beijing’s protests over a "freedom of navigation operation” conducted near a Chinese-held island in the South China Sea, in the latest incident drawing new attention to one of the world's potential military flashpoints.
In an unusual move, the Navy’s 7th Fleet issued a rebuttal to China’s objections to Tuesday’s mission, calling it “the latest in a long string of (Chinese) actions to misrepresent lawful U.S. maritime operations and assert its excessive and illegitimate maritime claims” in the South China Sea. China claims the area virtually in its entirety.
