PRC Says US Ship ‘Illegally Intruded’ in South China Sea

Facts

• On Tuesday, China's military stated that it repelled a US guided-missile cruiser that "illegally intruded" near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea — an allegation that the US Navy rebuked.
• Tian Junli, a spokesperson for the PRC's Southern Theater Command of the People’s Liberation Army, stated that "the actions of the US military seriously violated China’s sovereignty and security," stressing that this incident was "another ironclad proof" of its attempt to militarize the area.
• The US Navy’s 7th Fleet reacted by calling China's objections “the latest in a long string of actions to misrepresent lawful US maritime operations and assert its excessive and illegitimate maritime claims” in the South China Sea — a region Beijing claims falls under its sovereignty.
• The US 7th Fleet clarified that the USS Chancellorsville's operations to "assert navigational rights and freedoms" in the South China Sea were not affected by any interactions with foreign warships or aircraft.
• This is reportedly the first encounter between US and PRC militaries in the region since US Pres. Biden and China's leader Xi Jinping met face-to-face on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia earlier this month in an attempt to ease tensions.
• Beijing claims nearly all of the South China Sea, and the area has become one of many flashpoints between the two powers. The US rejects Chinese territorial claims in the resource-rich area and deems such assertions unlawful.

Sources: Reuters, Al Jazeera, Associated Press, Stripes, and CNN.

Narratives

• Pro-China narrative, as provided by Global Times. China has the right to defend its territorial waters from any foreign intrusion. The US has consistently provoked China in the South China Sea — a territory to which China has a strong historic claim — as it seeks to undermine Chinese regional sovereignty. Indeed, the US fears the PRC's growing military capabilities and acts aggressively.
• Anti-China narrative, as provided by The Guardian. China's territorial claims to the South China Sea are shaky at best. It's China that continues to create problems where none existed in the first place. Though Beijing claims that its military posture is purely defensive, the PRC's aggressive tendencies towards its neighbors and the US says otherwise. China will have to reverse the dangerous course it's taking in the region.

Predictions