By Phil Stewart and Nathaniel Taplin

WASHINGTON/SHANGHAI, Jan 30 (Reuters) – A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed inside 12 nautical miles of an island claimed by China and two different states within the South China Sea on Saturday to counter efforts to restrict freedom of navigation, the Pentagon stated.

China claims a lot of the South China Sea, by way of which greater than $5 trillion of world commerce is shipped yearly. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis stated no ships from China’s navy had been within the neighborhood of the guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur when it handed close to Triton Island within the Paracel Islands.

“This operation challenged attempts by the three claimants – China, Taiwan and Vietnam – to restrict navigation rights and freedoms,” Davis stated, reflecting the U.S. place that the essential sea lane ought to be handled as worldwide waters.

The Navy performed the same train in October by which the guided-missile destroyer Lassen sailed near certainly one of China’s artifical islands, drawing a rebuke from Beijing.

Davis stated the most recent operation sought to problem insurance policies that require prior permission or notification of transit inside territorial seas. He stated the United States took no place on competing sovereignty claims to naturally-formed land options within the South China Sea.

“No claimants were notified prior to the transit, which is consistent with our normal process and international law,” Davis stated.

The Chinese international ministry responded Saturday night with an announcement on its web site condemning the motion.

“The American warship has violated relevant Chinese laws by entering Chinese territorial waters without prior permission, and the Chinese side has taken relevant measures including monitoring and admonishments,” China’s international ministry stated in an announcement.

China’s protection ministry adopted up later Saturday night time with a much more forceful assertion on its web site, calling the American motion “intentionally provocative and “irresponsible and extremely dangerous.”

The ministry additionally stated that Chinese navy vessels had instantly taken responsive motion, performed identification checks and promptly gave warnings for the ship to maintain its distance.

“Regardless of whatever provocative steps the American side takes, China’s military will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard national sovereignty and security,” the ministry assertion concluded.

The operation adopted calls in Congress for the Obama administration to observe up on the October operation.

This month, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee criticized Obama for delaying additional freedom of navigation patrols.

He stated that allowed China to proceed to pursue its territorial ambitions within the area, together with by touchdown a airplane on a artifical island within the Spratly Islands archipelago. (Additional reporting by Michael Martina; Editing by Tom Heneghan)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016.