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US 'Strongly Opposes China's Bullying' in the South China Sea

Nike Ching

   STATE DEPARTMENT - The United States is accusing China of taking
   advantage of the COVID-19 outbreak and increasing its military
   activities near Taiwan and in the South China Sea.

   "The United States strongly opposes China's bullying," U.S. Secretary
   of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday, ahead of a virtual meeting between
   the U.S. and'¯the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
   foreign ministers'¯later in the day.

   "We've also seen that the Chinese Communist Party is exerting military
   pressure on Taiwan and coercing its neighbors in the South China Sea,
   even going so far as to sink a Vietnamese fishing vessel.'¯'¯We hope
   other nations will hold them to account," added Pompeo during a press
   briefing, hours before his videoconference with ASEAN ministers.

   The U.S. and ASEAN had been eyeing a summit to boost ties, at a time
   when China continues to expand its influence in Southeast Asia. The
   dialogue was [1]scheduled for March but later postponed due to the
   coronavirus outbreak.

   The top U.S. diplomat's warning Wednesday also comes as the U.S. has
   been conducting [2]flight operations in the South China Sea since
   mid-April, a move that Washington says'¯demonstrates its "enduring
   seven-decade commitment to the prosperity and security of the
   Indo-Pacific."

   Since the coronavirus outbreak, Beijing has announced new "research
   stations" on land features in the disputed waters, including on
   military bases it built on Fiery Cross Reef and Subi Reef, as well as
   special military aircraft landings on Fiery Cross Reef, according to
   the State Department.

References

   1. https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-asean-postpone-march-summit-amid-coronavirus-outbreak
   2. https://www.c7f.navy.mil/Media/News/Display/Article/2159328/uss-america-31st-meu-with-marine-corps-f-35b-fighter-aircraft-operate-in-south/

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