The coronavirus pandemic has done little to calm military tensions in the far east as the Chinese navy claims it has been forced to “expel” a US warship.
Senior Colonel Li Huamin, a spokesman for the People’s Liberation Army Southern Theatre Command, said China “organised air and sea forces to track and monitor" USS Barry, an US guided-missile destroyer.
He claimed the ship was in the country's territorial waters in the South China Sea – but the US Navy has rubbished the claim. “The US’s provocative actions seriously violated international law and related norms, seriously violated Chinese sovereignty and security interests,” he said. “It increased security risks that could lead to unexpected events, and it ill fits the global