China paper says US ship was harassing China fleet

BEIJING — A Chinese newspaper on Monday rejected the U.S. military's comments that a Chinese warship nearly collided with an American cruiser early this month, saying it was the U.S. ship that first harassed a Chinese fleet.

The near collision happened Dec. 5 in the South China Sea when the USS Cowpens was operating in international waters, and the U.S. ship maneuvered to avoid the collision, the U.S. Pacific Fleet has said.

But China's Global Times newspaper cited an unnamed source it described as being familiar with the confrontation as saying that the USS Cowpens had been getting too close to a Chinese naval drill.

The paper cited the source as saying said the USS Cowpens was operating near China's aircraft carrier, Liaoning, when it entered within 45 kilometers (30 miles) of the Chinese fleet's "inner defense layer."

"The USS Cowpens was tailing after and harassing the Liaoning formation," the newspaper quoted the person as saying, referring to the name of the Chinese aircraft carrier. "It took offensive actions at first towards the Liaoning formation on the day of the confrontation."

China's Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a faxed query and calls to its propaganda office rang unanswered. The State Department has raised the matter at a high level with the Chinese government.

The incident comes amid heightened tension over China's growing assertiveness in the region. Despite strenuous objections from Washington, Beijing recently declared a new air defense zone over parts of the East China Sea.

Pacific Fleet says it's not uncommon for navies to operate in close proximity and that's why it is paramount they all follow international standards for maritime "rules of the road."

The Chinese navy is operating with increasing frequency in the South China Sea and around Japan as part of China's development of its blue water navy. China vigorously opposes all U.S. Naval activity and intelligence gathering in the region.

China regards the entire South China Sea and island groups within it as its own and interprets international law as giving it the right to police foreign naval activity there.

The U.S. doesn't take a position on sovereignty claims to the sea but insists on the Navy's right to transit the area and collect surveillance data.