美國軍艦闖入南海 中國戰艦追蹤並警告

China said it warned and tracked a U.S. Navy warship as it came close to one of its artificial islands in the South China Sea's contested waters.

中方在一艘美國海軍戰艦靠近它位於南海爭端水域的一座人工島時，發出了警告並且進行了追蹤。

Cui Tiankai, Chinese ambassador to the United States, told CNN's Christiane Amanpour on Tuesday that the U.S. operation is "a very serious provocation, politically and militarily."

中國駐美大使崔天凱在週二告訴CNN的Christiane Amanpour，美方的行爲一種非常嚴重的政治和軍事挑釁。

Cui said it was a clear attempt by Washington to militarize the region.

崔天凱稱，很明顯，這是華盛頓企圖軍事化該區域的一種嘗試。

"It is a very absurd and even hypocritical position to ask others not to militarize the region while one's self is sending military vessels there so frequently," he said.

他說，“一邊要求別人不要軍事佔領該區域，一邊自己頻繁地派兵是一種可笑甚至虛僞的行徑和立場”。

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the vessel "illegally entered into the waters of China's Spratly Islands."

外交部稱，該軍艦非法進入中國南沙羣島。

"The action taken by the U.S. warship has threatened China's sovereignty and security interest, and has put the safety of personnel on the reefs in danger," a ministry statement said.

一位外交部官員稱，“美國軍艦的行爲已經威脅到了中國的國家主權、安全利益以及在珊瑚礁附近的個體的人身安全”。

Two Chinese warships and naval warplanes monitored and warned the American vessel, the Defense Ministry said.

國防部稱，兩艘中國戰艦和兩家海軍戰機監控到並且警告了美國戰艦。

A U.S. defense official told CNN that the destroyer USS Lassen "conducted a transit" within 12 nautical miles of Subi Reef in the Spratly Islands on Tuesday morning.

一名美國國防部的官員告訴CNN，週二早晨，驅逐艦拉森在南沙羣島的渚碧礁12海里內經過。

The operation put the ship within an area that would be considered Chinese sovereign territory if the United States recognized the man-made islands as being Chinese territory, the official said.

官員說，如果美國政府意識到人工島是中國領土的一部分，讓船隻航行的行爲會被和中國領土主權相連。

The United States hadn't breached the 12-mile limit since China began massive dredging operations to turn three reefs into artificial islands in 2014 -- even though maritime law doesn't usually accord territorial waters to islands built on previously submerged reefs.

自2014年中國開始大規模進行疏浚行動，把三片珊瑚變爲人工島以後，美國從未爲北國12海里限制，儘管海事法通常不同意在之前的暗礁領海內建立島嶼。

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, testifying before a Senate panel, said the missions will continue.

美國國防部祕書長Ash Carter在參議院調查組前作證，說任務還將繼續。

"We will fly, sail and operate wherever international law permits and whenever our operational needs require," he said.

他說，“無論國際法允許在何處，只要我們有任務需要，我們都會飛行，航行和運動”。