A US aircraft carrier has carried out routine military drills in the South China Sea under the watchful eye of China as tensions mount between Washington and North Korea.
F-18 Super Hornet jet fighters flew off the decks of the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier on Saturday while two Chinese frigates constantly maintained a line-of-sight vigil.
The two frigates of the People’s Liberation Army’s Navy conduct frequent close quarter surveillance, according to officers on the Japanese-based Reagan.
They said that sometimes Chinese vessels move around to check out the carrier en route to other destinations, while other times they stay for days within the screen of US ships and planes which are tasked with protecting the Reagan.
At times, the crew of Washington’s only carrier based outside…