A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier conducted exercises in the contested South China Sea on Friday, the U.S. navy said in a statement. A strike group led by the USS Ronald Reagan conducted flight operations and high-end maritime stability operations and exercises, the statement said. Washington has criticised Beijing over its novel coronavirus response and accuses it of taking advantage of the pandemic to push territorial claims in the South China Sea and elsewhere. The United States has long opposed China’s expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea and has sent warships regularly through the strategic waterway. China has objected to such exercises and said the U.S. rejection of its claims in the South China Sea has raised tension and undermined stability in the region.

Source: The Standard August 15, 2020 02:15 UTC