China has accused the United States of “hyping up” a recent incident in which an American underwater drone was captured by a Chinese naval vessel in the South China Sea.
China’s Defense Ministry issued a statement on Saturday, saying it has been in touch with the US to “return it to the US side in an appropriate manner.”
“During this process, the US side’s unilateral and open hyping up is inappropriate, and is not beneficial to the smooth resolution of this issue. We express regret at this,” it added.
The incident occurred on Thursday, when the Chinese navy launched a small boat and removed the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) from waters near a US oceanographic research vessel.
The US said the drone “was lawfully conducting a military survey.”
“It’s a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water- that it was US property,” said an official. The Pentagon also viewed the incident seriously and…