For The First Time In 2020 U.S. Navy Warship Sails Near Disputed Chinese Islands In South China Sea

The littoral combat ship USS Montgomery sails during the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercises in the South China Sea on Oct. 29. | ROYAL BRUNEI NAVY / VIA U.S. NAVY

Japan Times: U.S. Navy sails warship near disputed islands in South China Sea for first time in 2020

The U.S. Navy said Tuesday that it had sailed a warship near the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea — home to fortified islands built by China — on Saturday, in what was believed to be its first freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) of 2020.

A spokesman for the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet told The Japan Times that the USS Montgomery, an advanced littoral combat ship, had “asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the Spratly Islands, consistent with international law.”

The latest FONOP “upheld the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea,” 7th Fleet spokesman Lt. Joe Keiley said, adding that the Montgomery had “challenged the restrictions on innocent passage imposed by China, Vietnam, and Taiwan.”

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WNU Editor: China is not amused .... Beijing accuses US of ‘deliberate provocations’ in South China Sea as warship passes Spratly Islands (SCMP).

More News On A U.S. Navy Warship Sailing Near Disputed Chinese Islands In South China Sea

USS Montgomery Conducts First 2020 FONOP in South China Sea -- USNI News
Navy conducts year’s first FONOP in South China Sea -- Navy Times
Navy steams near contested Spratly Island reefs militarized by China -- Stars and Stripes
US warship sails in disputed South China Sea -- NHK