{"id":43865,"date":"2021-06-11T10:43:55","date_gmt":"2021-06-11T10:43:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/06\/11\/china-denounces-us-australian-navy-drills-as-muscle-flexing\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:25:58","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:25:58","slug":"china-denounces-us-australian-navy-drills-as-muscle-flexing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/flashpoints\/2021\/06\/11\/china-denounces-us-australian-navy-drills-as-muscle-flexing\/","title":{"rendered":"China denounces US-Australian navy drills as muscle flexing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BEIJING \u2014 China on Friday said the U.S<\/a>. and Australia were \u201cflexing their muscles\u201d with recent naval drills in the South China Sea<\/a>, underscoring Beijing\u2019s sensitivity over the strategic waterway it claims as its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Navy\u2019s 7th Fleet said the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer Curtis Wilbur and the Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat concluded a week of joint operations in the South China Sea. Those included maneuvering drills along with resupplying vessels, cross-deck helicopter operations and live-fire gunnery exercises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe ships honed their advanced mariner skills in a joint environment while enforcing the normalcy of routine operations throughout the region in accordance with international law,\u201d the Navy said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a daily briefing in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the two countries should \u201cdo things that are conducive to regional peace and stability, instead of flexing their muscles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. and China\u2019s neighbors have rejected Beijing\u2019s claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, through which an estimated $5 trillion in trade travels each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\t