CHINA on Sunday voiced strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to two U.S. warships trespassing into China’s territorial waters off the Xisha Islands.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said in a statement released Sunday night that the U.S. warships trespassed into China’s territorial waters off the Xisha Islands on Sunday without the permission of the Chinese Government, and the Chinese Navy identified the U.S. warships, warned and expelled them.

The Xisha Islands are part of China’s inherent territory, Lu said, noting that in accordance with the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, the Chinese Government promulgated the baseline of the territorial sea off the Xisha Islands in 1996.

The relevant Chinese law has explicit provisions on foreign military vessels’ entry into the territorial sea of China, Lu said.

The U.S. side once again sent warships to trespass into China’s territorial waters off the Xisha Islands, which violated the Chinese and relevant international laws, seriously infringed upon China’s sovereignty, and disrupted the peace, security and good order of the relevant waters.

“The Chinese side strongly urges the U.S. side to immediately stop such provocative operations that violate China’s sovereignty and threaten China’s security,” Lu said, noting that the Chinese side will continue to take all necessary measures to defend national sovereignty and security.

On Saturday, two U.S. navy warships, Higgins, a guided-missile destroyer, and Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, arbitrarily entered waters surrounding China’s Xisha Islands.

The Chinese Army acted immediately and dispatched warships to warn the U.S. warships to leave, the Ministry of National Defense said Sunday.

The ministry said that the U.S. provocation by sending warships to trespass into China’s territorial waters violated Chinese and relevant international laws, seriously violated China’s sovereignty, damaged the strategic mutual trust between militaries of the two countries, and undermined the peace, security and good order of the waters.(Xinhua)