#US increasing naval presence in South China Sea as check on China

The US ramped up its naval presence in the South China Sea, sending two aircraft carriers into the region in a show-of-force message to the Chinese Communist Party, according to a report.

The USS Ronald Reagan and the USS Nimitz are steaming toward the waterway where they will conduct military exercises as China holds drills in the area.

“The purpose is to show an unambiguous signal to our partners and allies that we are committed to regional security and stability,” Rear Adm. George Wikoff told the Wall Street Journal.

The military exercises by the two carriers and four other warships will include round-the-clock flights testing the striking ability of carrier-based aircraft, the report said.

It comes as tensions between Washington and Beijing are at a tipping point over trade issues, the coronavirus pandemic and the Chinese Communist Party’s role in quelling dissent in Hong Kong.

China is involved in a number of territorial disputes with smaller countries in the South China Sea, a critical shipping route for global commerce. It has also placed missiles and jamming equipment on artificial islands it built to hamper the operations of the US and its allies.

Since July 1, China’s People’s Liberation Army has been conducting exercises around the Paracel Islands, which China seized from Vietnam in 1974.

The US’ enhanced military presence caught Beijing’s attention, prompting warning that China has a “wide selection” of “aircraft carrier killer” missiles in the region.

“South China Sea is fully within grasp of the #PLA; any US #aircraftcarrier movement in the region is at the pleasure of PLA,” said a tweet from the Global Times, a Chinese state-run media outlet.

“And yet there they are,” the Navy Chief of Information said on Twitter in response to the post.

“Two @USNavy aircraft carriers operating in the international waters of the South China Sea. #USSNimitz & #USSRonaldReagan are not intimidated #AtOurDiscretion,” it said.