WASHINGTON: Beijing is undermining regional security and prosperity as well as challenging international rules and norms by engaging in coercive activities in the South China Sea, US Congressional leaders have said. The leaders asked the Trump administration to ensure freedom of navigation.
The South China Sea is a vitally important waterway for global commerce and for regional security, with almost 30 per cent of the maritime trade of the world transiting the South China Sea annually.
In a report, released jointly by the Senate and House armed services, the lawmakers noted that the consistent exercise of freedom of navigation operations and overflights by US naval and air forces throughout the world plays a critical role in safeguarding the freedom of the seas, supporting international law, and ensuring the continued safe passage and promotion of global commerce and trade.