BEIJING, China (Reuters) — The Chinese and U.S. militaries are having “unimpeded” talks about the return of U.S. underwater drone taken by a Chinese naval vessel in the South China Sea last week, China’s foreign ministry said on Monday (December 19).
The drone, known as an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), was taken on Thursday (December 15) in waters off the coast of the Philippines, the first seizure of its kind in recent memory.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to take a more aggressive approach in dealing with China over its economic and military policies, jumped on the unusual seizure with a pair of provocative tweets, accusing Beijing of stealing the equipment.
The Pentagon went public with its complaint about the incident and said on Saturday (December 17) it had secured a deal to get the drone back.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the she believed the U.S. drone issue will be “appropriately handled”. China’s defense ministry had earlier accused Washington of hyping up the issue.
“After they examined and then determined that this was the U.S.’s underwater drone, China decided to transfer it to the U.S. in an appropriate manner. As far I know, as I just said, China and the U.S. are using unimpeded military channels to maintain communication. I believe this issue will be appropriately handled,” she told journalists in Beijing during a regular news briefing.
Asked about Trump’s comments, Hua said describing the drone as stolen was “completely incorrect”.
“First, I want to say that we really don’t like this word ‘stolen’ and this word is completely incorrect. Regarding the specific details or circumstances, you can see very clearly from the defense ministry’s reply to journalists’ questions: China’s navy discovered (this drone), and they conducted an investigation to identify it with a professional and responsible attitude. I think what’s important, no matter if it was salvaged, or dragged out (of the water), the key is that China’s navy had a responsible and professional attitude,” she said.
The drone, which the Pentagon said was operating lawfully was collecting data about the salinity, temperature and clarity of the water about 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay, off the Philippines.
China is deeply suspicious of any U.S. military activities in the resource-rich South China Sea, with state media and experts saying the use of the drone was likely part of U.S. surveillance efforts in the disputed waterway.