The Type 054A guided missile frigate Xianning affiliated with the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command Navy tracks, monitors and warns away the USS Benfold guided missile destroyer which illegally entered the Chinese territorial waters of the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea on July 13, 2022. Photo: Courtesy of PLA Southern Theater Command

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command warned away a US destroyer which trespassed in Chinese territorial waters off the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea on Wednesday, and published photos of the operation for the first time, in a move that analysts said reflected the PLA's growing confidence and readiness against US provocations.

The US military activity came after recent China-US senior-level talks which were expected to be constructive. This exposed the US' double-faced behavior of saying one thing and doing another, observers said.

By organizing naval and air forces, the PLA Southern Theater Command tracked, monitored and warned away the USS Benfold guided missile destroyer which illegally entered Chinese territorial waters of the Xisha Islands on Wednesday without authorization from the Chinese government, said Senior Colonel Tian Lijun, spokesperson at the PLA Southern Theater Command, in a statement on the day.

According to a photo and caption released with the statement, the Chinese forces featured in the operation included the Type 054A guided missile frigate Xianning. The photo shows that the Chinese and US vessels are in visual range, with a PLA sailor on board the Xianning gathering data on the US destroyer. 

Another photo is a close-up shot of the USS Benfold, which placed its weapons and fire-control radar system in default positions. The US vessel probably attempted to justify its "innocent passage" under the monitoring of the PLA, analysts said.

It was the first time the PLA Southern Theater Command had released photos in a statement on its operation of warning away foreign warships in the South China Sea. The US has been repeatedly sending warships to waters off Xisha and Nansha in the South China Sea in a provocative manner, and every time the ships were warned away by the PLA Southern Theater Command.

Photos are proof of the US' provocative trespassing in Chinese territorial waters as well as the PLA's effective measures in countering them. They show how close the US warship was to the PLA vessel, and how the PLA dealt with the threat properly, a Chinese military expert who requested anonymity told the Global Times on Wednesday.

It shows the PLA's growing confidence in dealing with US provocations like this, the expert said.

The US military's move severely violated China's sovereignty and security, badly harmed peace and stability in the South China Sea, and seriously violated international law and the principles of international relations, marking yet another solid proof of the US' navigational hegemony and militarization of the South China Sea, Tian said.

Facts show again that the US is the true maker of security risks and destroyer of peace and stability in the South China Sea, Tian said.

A Chinese military insider told the Global Times on Wednesday that the US military said it wants to enhance dialogue with China to manage and control risks, but at the same it is intentionally violating China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, creating risks.

The US warship's trespassing came right after recent talks between Chinese and US officials. This reflected that the gap between the US' words and actions in terms of containing China are becoming wider amid deepening US domestic political, economic and social crises, Zhuo Hua, an international affairs expert at the School of International Relations and Diplomacy of Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The US can no longer hide its double-faced nature in international affairs. This will let not only China but also US allies lose respect and trust in the US, Zhuo said. As China is no longer confused by the US' double-faced behavior, the US' previous actions will add up and push China-US relations into a dead end, and risks for a military conflict will continue to rise, he said.

Also on Wednesday, the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group of the US Navy entered the South China Sea, operating to the south of the Nansha Islands, the South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative, a Beijing-based think tank, said on the day.

Troops of the PLA Southern Theater Command are on high alert at all times to firmly safeguard national sovereignty and security as well as peace and stability in the South China Sea, Tian said.