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UK to send warship to South China Sea, raising tensions with Beijing

27 July 2017 18:43 (UTC +04:00)

Britain plans to send a warship to the disputed South China Sea next year at a time of rising tensions between China and the US, a move likely to anger Beijing, APA reports quoting Press TV.

The UK would increase in presence in the waters after it sent four combat aircraft for joint exercises with Japan in the region last year, British Defense Minister Michael Fallon said Thursday.

"We hope to send a warship to region next year. We have not finalized exactly where that deployment will take place but we won't be constrained by China from sailing through the South China Sea," Fallon told Reuters.

"We flew RAF Typhoons through the South China Sea last October and we will exercise that right whenever we next have the opportunity to do so, whenever we have ships or planes in the region,” he added.

UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson also said Thursday that Britain plans to sail two new aircraft carriers through contested Asian waters.