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US doubles surveillance flights over contested South China Sea

The US military nearly doubled aerial surveillance operations in the South China Sea in July compared with May.

USS Ronald Reagan, bottom, and USS Nimitz have been involved in exercises in the South China Sea.
USS Ronald Reagan, bottom, and USS Nimitz have been involved in exercises in the South China Sea.

The US military nearly doubled aerial surveillance operations in the South China Sea in July compared with May, a Beijing think tank said on Sunday, warning that this made a confrontation much more likely.

The South China Sea strategic situation probing initiative, run by the Institute of Ocean ­Research at Peking University, said that US forces conducted 67 operations by large reconnaissance aircraft, compared with 49 in June and 35 in May.

In one operation, a US ­reconnaissance aircraft flew 40 nautical miles away from territory claimed by China, the think tank said.

“The US side was turning to confrontational surveillance from defensive surveillance, and it appeared to be building up a battlefield,” the researchers said on Chinese social media.

It said that the American ­activity “was increasingly political and aimed at exerting military pressure”.

“From the military perspective, there was no need for the US, which possesses all-round advanced reconnaissance technology, to keep such high frequency in aerial surveillance and to approach China in such close proximity,” the think tank said.

The intensive reconnaissance by the US follows a rapid deterioration in the relationship between Beijing and Washington.

The disputed South China Sea could be a flashpoint. Last month, the US rejected Beijing’s territorial claim over almost the entirety of the waters, which are rich in resources and include vital international shipping lanes. At least six other countries have rival claims.

As the US carried out exercises involving the USS Ronald Reagan and Nimitz carrier strike groups, Beijing revealed that its forces had conducted drills involving H-6J bombers, marking the first official acknowledgment of the warplane, which can carry seven anti-ship cruise missiles. The exercises included ­attacks on surface ships, long-distance strikes and night landings, as Beijing demonstrated its capability to counter an attack.

The think tank said that its tally of US reconnaissance operations did not include small surveillance aircraft or those that kept their tracking off. “Given that not all military planes turn on (position tracking), and that we do not have information on carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft, the actual number was even higher,” it said.

Beijing has denounced Washington for “breaking its promise not to take a stance on the sovereignty issue of the South China Sea”.

It was disclosed last week that spy planes from the US navy, air force and army are involved in an apparent three-pronged drive to track Chinese submarines and monitor activity by the People’s Liberation Army, which has redoubled training for operations aimed at Taiwan.

In Beijing, procurement documents from the China State Shipbuilding Corporation have revealed plans to build an ­amphibious assault ship ideal for an island invasion.

China has long considered Taiwan a breakaway province to be brought back under its control, by force if necessary.

The Times

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/the-times/us-doubles-surveillance-flights-over-contested-south-china-sea/news-story/3ad10ad959f25c272a67c4ba22f4d595