Chinese navy warns US spy plane in contested South China Sea
Escalation comes days after Beijing warned Washington that its determination to defend its territory was "unshakeable"
by TOM PHILLIPS | THE TELEGRAPH | MAY 21, 2015
Tensions in the South China Sea escalated further on Thursday after reports that a United States spy plane had flown over contested islands in the region triggering eight separate warnings from Chinese navy officials.
"Foreign military aircraft. This is Chinese navy. You are approaching our military alert zone. Leave immediately," a Chinese naval officer warned the P8-A Poseidon, the US' most advanced surveillance aircraft, as it flew a mission over the Fiery Cross Reef.
The drama was captured by a team of CNN journalists who had been allowed to accompany the American foray on Wednesday.
The plane flew as low as 15,000ft over the Fiery Cross Reef, in the Spratly island chain, where China has been accused of waging a massive and provocative land reclamation campaign.
Chinese navy officers issued eight warnings to the plane, CNN reported, suggesting Beijing is now trying to impose military exclusion zones above the controversial "artificial islands" it is building in the South China Sea.
One warning said simply: "You go!" Another said: "This is the Chinese navy. This is the Chinese navy. Please go away quickly."
Tensions in the South China Sea have spiked in recent weeks with Beijing coming under growing pressure over what US military officials say is a blatant attempt to build a "Great Wall of Sand" in the region. China hopes to use the "artificial islands" to strength its grip on areas that are disputed with countries including the Philippines and Vietnam, critics say.
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| Satellite images released by Jane's Defence Weekly show between Feb 6 and March 23, China built the first section of a concrete runway on Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly Islands archipelago (IHS) |
John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, visited Beijing last weekend, just days after Pentagon officials told the Wall Street Journal that Washington was considering deploying military aircraft and ships to the South China Sea to guarantee freedom of navigation.
Mr Kerry told reporters he had urged China "to take actions that will join everybody in helping to reduce tensions and increase the prospect of a diplomatic solution".
However, Wang Yi, China's foreign minister, rejected those calls. "The determination of the Chinese side to safeguard our own sovereignty and territorial integrity is as firm as a rock and it is unshakeable," he said.
Thursday's CNN report appears to be the latest US attempt to ratchet up the pressure on Beijing by emphasising the scale of its military build up in the South China Sea, which includes runways and early warning radars.
"There's obviously a lot of surface traffic down there: Chinese warships, Chinese coast guard ships. They have air search radars, so there's a pretty good bet they're tracking us," Lieutenant Commander Matt Newman told the channel.
