Chinese Air Force did not pose threat to Navy ships in South China Sea: US military

Amid tensions in the South China Sea, the US military’s Pacific Command said the Chinese Navy and Air Force (PLAAF) did not pose a threat to US Navy ships, aircraft, or sailors.

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“The Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group closely monitored all People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and Air Force (PLAAF) activity, and at no time did they pose a threat to US Navy ships, aircraft, or sailors,” the Pacific Command said in a statement.

The United States had earlier warned China against the use of force in disputed waters in the South China Sea. 

"We remind the PRC and all whose forces operate in the South China Sea that responsible maritime forces act with professionalism and restraint in the exercise of their authorities," State Department spokesman Ned Price had said.

"We are further concerned that China may invoke this new law to assert its unlawful maritime claims in the South China Sea," Price added.

Last month Taiwan had scambled its Air Force jets for two consecutive days after Chinese fighter aircraft and bombers carried out drills close to Taiwan-controlled islands in the disputed South China Sea.

Taiwan's defence ministry had said nine Chinese Air Force aircraft had flown near the Pratas Islands.  The Taiwanese defence ministry added that it tracked eleven aircraft the next day including two nuclear-capable H-6 bombers.

United States NATO ally Germany is to sail its warship across the South China Sea for the first time since 2002. The US Navy regularly conducts "freedom of navigation" operations in the South China Sea.

Earlier, France took its nuclear-propelled attack submarine and warship to patrol in the South China Sea with the US keen for allies to follow suit.