a Chinese Navy warship has seized an underwater drone deployed by an American oceanographic vessel in international waters in the South China Sea, triggering a formal diplomatic protest from the United States and a demand for its return, a US defense official told Reuters on Friday.
The incident, the first of its kind in recent memory, took place on Dec 15 northwest of Subic Bay off the Philippines just as the USNS Bowditch, an oceanographic survey ship, was about to retrieve the unmanned, underwater vehicle (UUV), the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"The UUV was lawfully conducting a military survey in the waters of the South China Sea," the official said.
"It's a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water - that it was US property."
The Chinese seizure will add to concerns about China's growing military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarization of maritime outposts.
A US think tank reported this week that new satellite imagery indicated that China has installed weapons, including anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, on all seven artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea.
The seized underwater drone was part of an unclassified program to collect oceanographic data, including salinity, temperature and clarity of the water, the official added.
Such data can help inform US military sonar data, since sound is affected by such factors.
The United States issued the formal demarche, as such protests are known, through diplomatic channels and included a demand that China immediately return the underwater drone.
The Chinese have acknowledged the demarche but not responded to it, the official added.
>2016 >his country haven't stole american drone yet pathetic
Andrew Lewis
Trump is going to put them in their place.
Owen Harris
>carriers >2016
You know that CHYNA isnt some bumfuckistan, right?
Nolan Sanders
stop interfering in our elections
Jace Gonzalez
Carriers come with groups of many other ships. China really needs to worry about our subs and things above.
Benjamin Price
Do they really think they can win a war against the US?
Even if they think they can force a stalemate, every scenario is still bad for them.
Maybe they think they can call Trump's bluff because Putin did it with Obama in Syria?
Gavin Thomas
carriers are garbage
they are only good at one thing: early strikes
no, they are not even good at fighting bumfuck third world countries, regular land-based airstrips do that better, too
>but muh totally impenetrable carrier group mishile shield
no
Gabriel Lopez
US no longer are the daddy of the world If they try to push their shit against China they will get YELLOWED.
Elijah Wilson
JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP
CUNTS
Luis Butler
Americunts cucked again by the ching chongs, kek.
Jordan Jenkins
In the 2000 wargames the bad guy poor sand nigger team BTFO the carrier group strategy by launching all his missiles at them at once. The top brass was so assmad about it that they redid the wargames with the rules changed so that they were guaranteed to win.
Blake Miller
Your country becomes near bankrupt and politically divided when you fight goat farmers. Imagine if you fought not just an actual military, but a large and competent one.
Grayson Jones
Remember: Russia is the enemy.
Jace Davis
What would Swedes know about it? You are cowards and effeminate pussies.
Joseph Edwards
>large and competent one. Gonna need a source on that competence since Chinese have no combat experience in their current generation. The large part is meaningless. Just means our airstrikes will get more kills.
Ryan Mitchell
Navyfag here. The USNS Bowditch is indeed an oceanographic vessel. It really does just study stuff. That "USNS" indicates it is not a commissioned ship, and is not crewed by military personnel - except maybe some security. Every major naval power operates similar vessels and they're a common sight. Sup Forums, as usual, blowing shit out of proporiton.
Nathaniel Rogers
You do realize a submarine doesn't mean a regular ship that has sunk in port, right?
Andrew Edwards
>US sending underwater spy subs with the express purpose of spying on the Chinese >China seizes the piece of shit because it's in their fucking waters and you don't do that shit >US goes full autism and starts crying all over the news about the evil Chinese stealing their spy sub and how muhfuggin sovereign vessel how dare u
This is the same shit they pull when they fly spy planes next to or through Russian airspace, then scream and throw a tantrum when the Russians send fucking jets to intercept like it's the worst thing in the world, even though they do the same to all Russian airplanes.
Watch as they do literally nothing except bitch and moan on the news while wagging their fingers at the ebil chinese for """stealing""" a spy vessel then go and scream how Russia hacked their elections. Fucking western hypocrisy at its finest.
Wyatt Williams
little Russia stop
Haven't you caused enough trouble?
James Robinson
>Chinese Navy warship has seized an underwater drone >occurred in the South China Sea about 50 miles (80km) northwest of Subic Bay >50 miles from Subic Bay >blowing shit out of proporiton >US formally demands for its return
Imo, shit just when from 5 to 8.5 really fucking fast
Owen Ortiz
>little drone sub that maps the ocean floor >100 miles out to sea >spying does china have underwater bases or something? how is oceanography spying
Wyatt Butler
>it's in their fucking waters
The South China Sea is not Chinese.
Oliver Watson
It is de facto Chinese and there is literally nothing you can do about it short of starting a war, which is simply not going to happen because you don't start a fucking nuclear war over some yellow niggers crying about the ebil chungkuos stealing their trade.
Literally nothing will happen. The Chinese will dump all of the data on that piece of shit, copy it and share it with the russians, and then return it like they've always done.
Ethan Ortiz
And then our governments wonder why they're so hated
James Campbell
>oceanograhpic UUVs >spy sub
Territorial waters stop at 12 nautical miles. What's your point? And yeah there would be an immediate demand for it's return - it's US property, operating lawfully. SCS is a sensitive area but it's also an area where you can't budge on your stance. Sup Forums claims WW3 is starting once a day, this is nothing new.
Andrew Perry
Shut up France Get massacred by more Muslims
Ryder Martin
>The seized underwater drone was part of an unclassified program to collect oceanographic data, including salinity, temperature and clarity of the water, the official added. Does anyone believe this? Obviously a military application.
Aiden Reed
>there is literally nothing you can do about it
We'll see about that.
Carter Anderson
>It's in their waters It's international waters though? Am I missing something here
Wyatt White
I would join the military if we went to war with China. I wanna waste some gooks.
Chase Mitchell
>international waters
Basically what's happening in the South China sea is:
>China declares it owns international waters based on nothing >starts building artificial islands with airfields and defenses >intercepts completely lawful commerce ships and disrupts free passage >breaking a fuckton of international laws
Chinks don't own shit, and they're fucking up international shipping routes and harassing vessels who are there completely legally.
Based on literally nothing, their claims are supported by nobody. Look at this ridiculous bullshit.
This is a good comparison, China's claims over the islands in the South China sea are as ridiculous and clown-like as Argentina's claims over the Falklands and Antarctic territory.
Kayden Hill
>implying that shit isn't used for spying
Go back to watching CNN you stupid fucking idiot. You're gullible enough to believe whatever shitheap they're spewing today.
>in international waters in the South China Sea
The US and the rest of shitty yellow nigger countries consider them international, the biggest great power in Asia next to Russia says otherwise. There is literally nothing you can or will do about it.
Brayden Rodriguez
Yeah.
The underwater drone is totally not in the China Sea to watch what the Chinese navy is doing
Leo James
Doesn't matter if it was spying or not because it was in international waters.
Samuel Russell
>if i don't like the claim then its not legit It will be a pleasure seeing Europe burn to the ground
Kayden Foster
It really dosnt matter. China just BTFO americans and they wont do anything.
Cameron Rodriguez
>inside historically Chinese territorial waters >mapping floor for submarines >mapping floor for submerged defense systems against U.S. submarines >i-its not real spying if its under water! U.S.A.didndunuthing we good goys!
inb4 b-buts muh fake news said those large housed islands with soil and fresh water are submerged rocks and Chinese islands are not real because they have been expanded some few meters and its not real China
Sebastian Butler
>GUNNA JOIN DUH ARMEEH AND BLAST DEM GOOKS YEEHAW
Stop LARPing and contribute something to the discussion.
Maybe read my post again before posting your shitty opinion, you snail slurping mother fucker.
Henry Morgan
It's spy shit son.
Jonathan Phillips
Except you won't because you're a physically unworthy pasty weakling who's only tough on the itnernet
Connor King
>theu think we need a UUV to see what the Chinese navy is doing
The UUV was picked up in international waters. Territorial waters extend 12nm from land. China doesn't get to rewrite maritime law just because it wants a monopoly on the SCS.
Easton Carter
Listen it's not my fault your country is ideal for making comparisons, when you can hold territory off your own coast and your navy doesn't sink of its own accord, then people will respect you more.
>historically Chinese waters >extending to Japanese islands and the Malaysian coast >extending 2000km beyond the country's coastline
Ian Mitchell
>be nigger >gets on lawn of someone else ignoring don't tresspass signs everywhere >get shot >B-BUT I DENIED THAT YOUR FAMILY OWNED THIS LAND FOR GENERATIONS! SO IM NOT TRESSPASSING! ITS ASSAULT!
Justin James
Who gives a fuck china flew a fucking nuclear bomber out there.
I say we sent carriers out there and see what they do.
Fucking gooks
Nolan Stewart
Oh Serbia, you are still sad about Bosnia and Kosovo aren't you? Mean old UN and NATO stopping you guys from ethnic cleansing shit.
Charles Nguyen
>haha your nation lost a small war over 30 years ago Funny how it was French tech that helped us sink some British ships
Now that I think about it, France is the only euro nation worth a crap
Jason Kelly
China vs USA would be pretty hilarious. Half of the US would be protesting their own military's actions while China just does it's thing. Even if USA win over seas the population will be so buttmad that it'd cause a shit storm for the next 20 years.
Landon Diaz
You know nothing of the subject. Red team was stacking missiles on fishing boats and teleporting messages at the speed of light.
Both sides were autistic, but the carrier group hardly got BTFO.
How the fuck can you be so wrong? Literally all you had to do was look up the article real quick.
Elijah Kelly
>look how viciously their claims extend over Chinese islands we handed to Japan on paper after WW2
>durr territorial waters are only created by a countries mainland coastlines >>durr muh 2000km! >what is Hawaii >what is Guam >what are Marshall islands
>look how close China is moving its for millenia owned territory near our military bases
Adrian Powell
International waters.
This is the equivalent of a chink pulling you out of your car as you're driving down the street because they've declared that their lawn extends 2000km beyond their fence.
The waters you own extend 22km beyond your coast. That's the same for everyone all over the world. Beyond that is international waters, where it is illegal under international law to intercept ships and fuck about.
China has decided, based on absolutely nothing, that international law doesn't apply to them, and have declared that their territorial waters extend 2000km beyond their borders in a random fucking direction.
Doesn't matter what the US drone was doing, it could have been carrying a giant flag that says "Fuck Mao" and burning an effigy of Sun Wukong, it's in international waters and China doesn't have any right to intercept it, it's illegal.
A good example of this was the Argentinians sinking a Chinese fishing boat that violated their territorial waters in March for massive keks.
Seriously fuck Chinks they have no respect for international law, fucking parasites. They need to get kicked in the dick and shown that they have to follow the rules like everyone else.
They're always entering other country's economic zones to fish illegally.
Hawaii and Guam are part of the US, there isn't even anything near them to be disputed, and us territory extends 22km beyond their coasts just like everywhere else, the US doesn't own the Pacafic.
Oliver Ross
the chinks are afraid we'll find out how much toxic waste they dump into the oceans
enough to rival our own "trash islands" in the pacific
sad!
Nathan Anderson
There's no landmass even remotely near where the UUV was picked up that China could use to claim territorial waters. Territorial waters are 12 nautical miles. That's 13.8 regular miles, and 22.2km. There is not a court in the world that would rule that UUV as operating in Chinese territory, and if China doesn't turn the UUV over with due haste, it's just going to be bad public relations for them.
Ryan Gutierrez
Buttmad britbong is upset that he doesn't have a global empire any more
Xavier Robinson
We should start stealing their warships. Knock em out with an em blast and take the fuckers. Let China know later.
Connor Miller
We'll be blasting you Albanians too, buddy, just you wait.
Robert Cook
implying China gives a fuck about "bad PR". What's the west going to do? Release their cheap import trade agreements?
Isaac Phillips
>tfw you can finally be proud of your country since it's military will be "commanded" by trump
Elijah Cooper
>Your country becomes near bankrupt and politically divided when you fight goat farmers. Imagine if you fought not just an actual military, but a large and competent one. Nigger, you do understand fighting goat farmers is hard, right? Because you don't know which one is the enemy, and you can't just go around killing everyone you see. With an actual military opposing us, wearing their uniforms, we know exactly who they are, and who to shoot. The last time we had an enemy with a uniform we beat them in 48 hours.
