The Drive:
The U.S. Navy has revealed that a ship from China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN, recently maneuvered dangerously close to the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Decatur in the disputed South China Sea. The announcement followed reports that Chinese officials had decided not to hold a planned high-level meeting with U.S. defense officials, including Secretary of Defense James Mattis, as relations between the two countries become increasingly frigid over the status of the Southeast Asian body of water, an escalating trade war, arms sales to Taiwan, and accusations of Beijing’s attempts to influence American politics.
The incident occurred on Sept. 30, 2018, near Gaven Reefs, in the especially contested Spratly Island chain. The PLAN destroyer, identified only as Luyang-class ship, came within 45 yards of Decatur‘s bow, forcing the ship to change course in order to avoid a collision. The Chinese ship had already been conducting “increasingly aggressive maneuvers,” according to a statement from the U.S. Pacific Fleet, as well as issuing warnings for the American vessel to leave the area.
