美军舰进入中国南海岛礁邻近海域，中国国防部将此标记为严重政治和军事挑衅。国防部发言人任国强于周五发言表达了我国立场。任国强说，“马斯廷”号导弹驱逐舰肆意闯入中国海域，已被我方海军识别并警告驱离。
China's Ministry of National Defense has labeled a US warship's entry into waters around China's islands and reefs in the South China Sea as a serious political and military provocation.
Spokesperson Ren Guoqiang set out the ministry's position on Friday.
Ren said the USS Mustin, a guided missile destroyer, arbitrarily entered the waters before it was identified by two Chinese vessels and warned off.
China's sovereignty over the islands and their surrounding waters in the South China Sea is beyond question, he said.
However, the US has time and again sent warships into the area, severely damaging the sovereignty and security of China and in opposition to the basic norms of international relations, Ren continued.
China resolutely opposes such actions as they harm military relations between the two countries, causing close encounters between their air forces and navies and could lead to misjudgment and even accidents, according to the spokesperson.
China firmly safeguards the freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea in accordance with international law, but "resolutely opposes any illegal provocation in the name of 'freedom of navigation'," Ren said.
"We ask the US to respect the sovereignty and security of China, respect the will of countries in the region, who want peace, stability and tranquility, and not to trouble out of nothing," he said.
Ren added that the provocation would only drive the Chinese military to continue to improve its defense capabilities.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying at a press conference on Friday. /Ministry of Foreign Affairs Photo
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying also asserted on Friday that China strongly urges the US to immediately stop provocative actions that violate China's sovereignty and threaten its security.
"The US should earnestly respect the efforts of regional countries to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea," she added.
On Jan. 17, two months before the incident on Friday, the USS Hopper, another guided missile destroyer, made an arbitrary entry into the waters surrounding Huangyan Island in the South China Sea, and was driven away by Chinese missile destroyer Huangshan.
(Top image: File photo via Xinhua News Agency)
