A not so prominently played up news item was a near clash between Chinese and American warships in the South China Sea last Monday. First reported by the New Times and confirmed by the Chinese foreign ministry was an incident in the Paracels group of islands involving two US warships which were confronted by China’s navy. The guided missile cruiser USS Antietam and destroyer USS Higgins were conducting freedom of navigation operations in contested waters when challenged by Chinese warships 24 nautical miles near the Paracels which is also being claimed by Vietnam. The Chinese warships warned the Americans to stay away.

Del Rosario, A. (2018, May 30). US, China warships in near clash. Manila Standard, pp. A4, A5.