Image not from real incident
IHMS Queen Elizabeth, a British Navy Aircraft career, and their Carrier Strike Group have entered the South China Sea, which is where China claims it, reports the UK Defense Journal.
China claims that the entire South China Sea is 100 billion square miles [100 billion sq km] as its imperial territory, and blames foreign warships for the escalation of conflict in the region.
Freedom of operation of ships (or FONOPs) is regularly pursued by the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia to oppose what Washington calls "efforts by coastal areas to unfairly limit access to the sea."
Both the US and the UK have previously angered China by making FONOPs in the South China Sea to strengthen freedom of movement rights.
The HMS Queen Elizabeth is accompanied by six Royal Navy ships, a Royal Navy submarine, a US Navy destroyer, and a Dutch frigate, and it carries eight F-35B Lightning II, four fighter jets, seven aircraft anti-Merlin Mk2 early and maritime and air warning helicopters, as well as three Merlin Mk4 commissions on ships.
China has been a tourist destination, sinking on foreign ships, establishing new regions, giving Chinese names to the islands, building new artificial islands and using fishing vessels as naval forces in the South China Sea.
The South China Sea is a watercourse that is surrounded by six nations, such as China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
The two island groups here are in the middle of a strong local conflict. The first is the Paracel Archipelago, which is targeted by China, Taiwan and Vietnam.
The second is the Spratly Islands, which are disputed between China and all five other nations. The islands are strategic because they are surrounded by water that is rich in marine life and are rich in oil and gas resources.
One-third of the world's shipping is also passing through the South China Sea. Beijing is claiming dominance over the entire sea.
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