The Coast Guard observed multiple Chinese naval ships operating in the United States’s exclusive economic zone off the Alaskan coast.
The four ships from the People’s Liberation Army Navy, a guided-missile cruiser, guided-missile destroyer, general intelligence vessel, and auxiliary vessel, were spotted as close as 46 miles off the Aleutian Islands coast, the Coast Guard said on Monday.
STORIES FROM INSIDE THE PENTAGON ON 9/11: ‘SAW THE FIREBALL PASS OVER THE TOP OF OUR HEAD’
Though the Chinese ships entered the U.S.’s exclusive economic zone, they did not enter U.S. territorial waters and followed international laws and norms.
“Security in the Bering Sea and the Arctic is homeland security,” said Vice Adm. Michael McAllister, commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area. “The U.S. Coast Guard is continuously present in this important region to uphold American interests and protect U.S. economic prosperity.”
The interactions between the U.S. and Chinese sailors were in line with rules imposed under the Western Pacific Naval Symposium’s Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea and Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.
The Coast Guard said the Chinese vessels were conducting military and surveillance operations while deployed in the Arctic region.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The interaction occurred just days after the U.S. Navy defied China’s new maritime rules when a destroyer sailed through the South China Sea.
The USS Benfold, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, sailed around the Spratly Islands in a way “consistent with international law,” 7th Fleet Public Affairs said in a statement last Wednesday, though the vessel violated China’s newly implemented maritime policy.
