BEIJING, China (Reuters) – China opposes the use of freedom of overflight as an excuse to harm its security, the country’s foreign ministry said on Friday (July 7), after two United States bombers flew over the disputed South China Sea.
The flight by the B-1B Lancer bombers from Guam on Thursday (July 6) came as US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping prepare for a meeting on the sidelines of a G20 summit in Germany.
The US has criticized China’s build-up of military facilities on South China Sea reefs and tiny islands it has constructed, concerned that they could be used to extend its strategic reach.
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan also have claims in the sea, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes each year.
