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China has described as a "provocative" recent mission of US B-52 bombers with nuclear capabilities over the disputed South China Sea and said the United States alone was responsible for the recent deterioration of relations between their armies.
Defense Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang also reaffirmed at a monthly press conference the objections of China to a US arms sale to Taiwan and the imposition of US sanctions on the purchase of Russian defense equipment.
"With respect to the provocative action of US military aircraft, we are strongly opposed to it and we will take every means necessary to safeguard our rights and interests," Ren said.
Two B-52s flew over the strategic waterway, largely claimed by China, earlier this week in what the Pentagon called a routine mission. Meanwhile, two B-52s also flew over the East China Sea this week, where China has declared Air Defense Identification Zone and claims unmanned islands controlled by Japan.
China has sought to strengthen its claim to the South China Sea by building seven islands on the reefs and equipping them with military installations such as airstrips, radar domes and missile systems. Five other governments are claiming a territory in the oil and gas-rich zone, with global trade estimated at $ 5 trillion a year.
Asked at the Pentagon Wednesday about the bombers' flights, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he was not concerned that they could create tension with Beijing.
"It continues, if it was 20 years ago and they had not militarized these features there, it would have been just another bomber en route to Diego Garcia or elsewhere," he said. said Mattis. US base in the Indian Ocean.
"So there is nothing extraordinary about it," said Mattis.
China also asked the United States to cancel a sale of $ 330 million spare parts and related support for F-16 fighter aircraft and other Taiwanese military aircraft, warning against "serious damage "to bilateral relations.
Washington does not have official relations with Taiwan's democratically elected government but is forced by US law to see that it has the means to defend itself.
The sale of weapons coincides with the US decision to issue a visa ban and asset freeze from the China Department of Equipment Development and its director, Li Shangfu, regarding the purchase of Su-35 fighter aircraft in Russia and S-400 missile system-related equipment this year.
The purchase by China of the arms of Rosoboronexport, Russia's leading arms exporter, violated a 2017 law aimed at punishing the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin for his interference in the US and US elections. ;other activites.
In response, China demanded that the sanctions be revoked, summoned the US ambassador and defense attaché to protest, and recalled his navy commander on a trip to the United States.
China has also refused a stopover request at the Port of China. October in Hong Kong by the USS Wasp amphibious assault ship. China denied for the last time such a visit in 2016 in the midst of escalating tensions between countries in the South China Sea.
The increase in friction may affect other exchanges, including a planned visit to the US by Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe, a possibility that Ren has not ruled out.
"The United States must be blamed for the impact on relations between China and the army We call on the United States to adopt a rational and mature attitude and create favorable conditions for bilateral exchanges and cooperation" , said Wei.
Asked about the convergence of contentious issues, Mattis said on Wednesday that he did not think the parties were witnessing a "fundamental change."
"We are just going through one of those periodic points where we have to learn to manage our differences," said Mattis.
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