The destroyer USS Lassen in the Spratly Islands - News In Bed (NIB) - Read by Linda

• published: 28 Oct 2015
• views: 16

Good morning, Listeners! This is Linda from News in Bed – with a special topic of conversation for you this morning. Today is Wednesday, October 28, 2015. Here is the top story: The South China Sea is the subject of rival and often messy territorial claims, with China, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam disputing sovereignty of island chains and nearby waters. In little more than 18 months, China has reclaimed more than 2,000 acres at three main locations in the Spratly Islands -- Subi, Mischief and Fiery Cross reefs, where it has built airstrips thought to be capable of handling bombers. Even though maritime law doesn't usually accord territorial waters to islands built on previously submerged reefs, the Chinese are saying that a U.S. Navy warship came too close to one of its artificial islands, and that it had to deploy two Chinese warships, as well as naval warplanes, to monitor and warn the American vessel in the South China Sea's contested waters. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday that the vessel "illegally entered into the waters of China's Spratly Islands. The action taken by the U.S. warship has threatened China's sovereignty and security interest, and has put the safety of personnel on the reefs in danger.” A U.S. defense official told CNN that the destroyer USS Lassen "conducted a transit" within 12 nautical miles of Subi Reef in the Spratly Islands on Tuesday morning. The United States hasn't breached the 12-mile limit since China began massive dredging operations to turn three reefs into artificial islands in 2014 – even if the U.S. were to recognize the man-made islands as being Chinese territory. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs insists that its activity in the South China Sea doesn’t affect freedom of navigation by sea or air, but then said that it holds "indisputable sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and its nearby waters”. In another contradictory statement, Chinese officials stated, "China is resolutely opposed to any country damaging China's sovereignty and security interest in the name of freedom of navigation and overflight. Similarly, back in May, a U.S. surveillance plane carrying a CNN news crew flew over the Spratly Islands, and immediately triggered eight warnings from the Chinese navy to back off. As an example of the communist nation’s double standards, China has also claimed that its actions in September, when Chinese navy ships entered U.S. territorial waters off Alaska, coming within 12 miles of the coastline during President Barack Obama's visit to the state, were “consistent with innocent passage under international maritime law.” And that is our topic of conversation for today. Have a winning Wednesday, and we’ll see you tomorrow! https://youtu.be/DlDkO9Rhyds