CHINA SHOWDOWN: Trump ignores warnings and sends Navy into disputed region
DONALD TRUMP has risked a Chinese backlash by sending US military vessels into a disputed region.
Donald Trump has risked a Chinese backlash after sending the Navy into the South China Sea
The American president sent an aircraft carrier strike group into the South China Sea last weekend - despite warnings from China not to question its right to the area.
While the US described the patrol as “routine”, the move will be seen as a thinly-veiled warning from Mr Trump to China.
Mr Trump’s administrations are now considering sending more warships into the region as a show of strength.
China had previously instructed the US not to question its influence in the South China Sea - especially in waters surrounding the Paracel Islands, which Beijing has claimed.
These tactically valuable islands are being increasingly militarised by China - despite claims for control from Taiwan and Vietnam.
Donald Trump's aggressive foreign policy has infuriated China
Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines also claim waters in the region, which is quickly becoming one of the most complex waters on Earth.
Last week the Chinese foreign ministry warned America not to provoke it, stating: “We urge the US not to take any actions that challenge China’s sovereignty and security.”
Mr Trump, however, shows no signs of straying from his election campaign promise to stand firm against China.
As well as provocatively sending warships near disputed areas in the South China Sea, Mr Trump is also refusing to accept the ‘One China’ policy by recognising Taiwan as an independent state.
The Paracel Islands are claimed by both China and Vietnam
The largely self-governing state is seen as illegitimate by the Chinese government - a policy Mr Trump is keen to eradicate.
In December he said he did not see why he must be “bound by a one China policy unless we make a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade.”
Vietnames protestors campaigning against China's claim over the Paracel Islands
China's Foreign Ministry said co-operation was "out of the question" if Washington could not recognise Beijing's core interest on Taiwan, indicating it would reject any effort by Trump to use the issue as a bargaining chip in a long list of commercial and security problems facing the two countries.
Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said: “China has noted the report and expresses serious concern about it. I want to stress that the Taiwan issue concerns China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and involves China's core interests.”