U.S. destroyer sails in disputed South China Sea amid trade talks

A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed near islands which claimed by China in the South China Sea on Friday, the U.S. military said. That move is likely to anger Beijing.

The busy waterway is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the U.S.-Chinese relationship, which include an escalating trade war, American sanctions on China's military and U.S. relations with Taiwan. a spokeswoman for the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fleet told Reuters that the destroyer Wayne E. Meyer challenged territorial claims in the operation, including what she described as excessive Chinese claims around the Paracel Islands, which are also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam.