China claims straight baselines around the Paracel Islands, a position widely seen as inconsistent with international maritime law. In January, Japan joined<\/a><\/span> a growing list of countries that have recently submitted diplomatic notes to the United Nations to formally challenge these claims.<\/p>\n The United States has conducted regular FONOPS in the South China Sea since 2015. These operations \u201care designed to be conducted in accordance with international law and demonstrate that the United States will fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows \u2014 regardless of the location of excessive maritime claims and regardless of current events,\u201d the news release stated.<\/p>\n The operation \u201cupheld the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea recognized in international law by challenging the unlawful restrictions on innocent passage imposed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam and also by challenging China\u2019s claim to straight baselines enclosing the Paracel Islands,\u201d the news release said.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for the People\u2019s Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command criticized<\/a><\/span> the FONOP, stating that the USS John S. McCain \u201cintruded into China\u2019s Xisha [Paracels] territorial sea without permission.\u201d The spokesperson accused the U.S. military of \u201cseriously damaging regional peace and stability\u201d and \u201cseriously violating China\u2019s sovereignty and security.\u201d<\/p>\n According to the spokesperson, the Southern Theater Command organized naval and air assets to track the U.S. warship and warn it away from the area.<\/p>\n China claims virtually all of the South China Sea and its assertive behavior in these disputed waters have been a source of tension with the U.S. Friday\u2019s FONOP was the latest indication from the Biden administration that it is sustaining U.S. policies that challenge China\u2019s claims and promote what Washington calls a \u201cfree and open Indo-Pacific.\u201d<\/p>\n In a call Thursday with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated that stance. Vietnam is the most assertive among the Southeast Asian nations that challenge China\u2019s South China Sea claims.<\/p>\n Blinken and Minh \u201creaffirmed the strength of the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership and discussed our shared commitment to peace and prosperity in a free and open Indo-Pacific region and protecting and preserving a rules-based South China Sea,\u201d the State Department said.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Also Friday, the U.S. Nimitz Carrier Strike Group navigated through the Strait of Malacca into the South China Sea, USNI News reported<\/a><\/span>. It\u2019s the second foray into those waters by a U.S. aircraft carrier since Biden took office last month. In January, the United States sailed<\/a><\/span> the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group into the South China Sea for routine operations including maritime strike exercises and coordinated tactical training between surface and air units.<\/p>\n In a reminder of the day-to-day tensions in the South China Sea, particularly in waters where there are overlapping claims, a Malaysian coastguard vessel appears to have sailed up to a China Coast Guard (CCG) ship at South Luconia Shoals in the past week, about 100 nautical miles off Malaysia\u2019s coast.<\/p>\n Publicly available automatic identification system (AIS) data shows that the HJ5202, which belongs to the CCG, has been operating around the South Luconia Shoals since Jan. 17. The area is within Malaysia exclusive economic zone but is also claimed by China.<\/p>\n The Coast Guard 3902, a Malaysian vessel, sailed up to the South Luconia Shoals from Tanjung Kidurong on Feb. 2 and returned to port on Feb. 4. The AIS data indicates that the HJ5202 may have sailed within 1.5 to 2 nautical miles of the Coast Guard 3902 at one point on Feb. 4.<\/p>\n\n![\"Cmdr.](\"https:\/\/www.rfa.org\/english\/news\/china\/usa-southchinasea-02052021171547.html\/fonop2.jpg\/@@images\/f2a2790e-5520-4ad3-8870-a583fa594046.jpeg\" "\\"fonop2.jpg\\"")
Cmdr. Joseph Gunta, the executive officer of the USS John S. McCain, observes from the vessel as it sails in the South China Sea, Feb. 5, 2021. Credit: U.S. Navy.<\/p>\n