A Chinese navy ship blocked US Navy guided missile cruiser the USS Cowpens in international waters,forcing it to take action to avoid a collision. The incident was ultimately resolved through ship-to-ship communication,although the intention of such a risky move remained unclear."I don't know the intent of the guy driving that PLA[People's Liberation Army] ship,"a US Navy official complained."I just know that he was moving to impede and harass the Cowpens."The US lodged a complaint with Chinese officials.
"Scarborough Shoal is ours!"- April 2012
The Philippines protested against China's arrival on,and occupation of,Scarborough Shoal. After a tense stand-off,both sides agreed to de-escalate the situation,but only the Philippines withdrew its ship. Cyber patriots from the Philippinesdefaced a Chinese website leaving the message:"Chinese government is clearly retarded. Scarborough Shoal is ours!"The Philippines,once a US colony and host to the US military during the Vietnam War,launched a campaign to challenge China in the international court,angering China.
Chinese ships converge on,try to block US Navy ship,the USNS Impeccable - March 2009
In 2009,a group of Chinese ships,some naval and some civilian,came within about 15 metres of a non-commissioned US Navy surveillance ship in international waters in the South China Sea. Chinese crew members waved flags and demanded the US ship leave. They also tried to catch the ship's underwater listening equipment. At one moment the path of the ship was blocked. The next day,Chinese aircraft repeatedly buzzed the ship at an altitude of about 600 feet.
EP3 Hainan plane downing – April 2001
A Chinese F-8 fighter collided with a US Navy EP-3 reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea. The Chinese pilot was trying to execute"a close pass in anapparent attempt to impress or intimidate the EP-3 crew[and] made a fatal error in judgment". The collision resulted in the crash of the Chinese jet and the forced landing of the US plane on Hainan Island. Two dozen US crew members were held for 11 days as China and US debated who was at fault.
Mischief Reef and Second Thomas Shoal – 1994 to today
China built structures to protect fishermen on Mischief Reef in 1994-1995,sparking a furious response from the Philippines. In 1999,China built more on the island,spurring more protests. As a result,the Philippines deliberately runs a World War II-era landing craft on Second Thomas Shoal,using it as an outpost for a garrison of sailors to keep watch. With Chinese ships in the area,the Philippines has to get creative to keep the sailors resupplied,avoiding Chinese ships and,more recently,air-dropping supplies.
China and Vietnam fight over Spratlys in 1988
Nearly a decade after Vietnam and China went to war with each other,China and Vietnam engaged in naval battle over the Johnson South Reef in the Spratlys.
Vietnam lost more than 70 sailors and three ships in the action. Both countries gave conflicting accounts of how the conflict,in which China prevailed,came to pass. The battle underscores an important point about tussling over islets and reefs in the sea:it's extremely difficult to know for certain what is happening on these remote outcroppings. The uncertainty often worsens the dispute.
The Battle of the Paracel Islands in January 1974
This dust-up preceded what became,well,war between Vietnam and China. In 1974 South Vietnamese ships discovered Chinese troops on the Crescent Group in the western Paracel Islands. Both sides sent more ships. Within days,South Vietnamese and Chinese ships and troops exchanged fire. With the US Navy winding down its support of South Vietnam,the nation found itself outgunned. The Vietnamese lost more than 50 troops,while China is thought to have lost about 15 sailors. In 1979,China would cross Vietnam's border during the month-long Sino-Vietnamese War.
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