WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Navy’s stepped-up freedom of navigation transits in the South China Sea sends an unmistakable message to China and other nations in the region, a State Department official said this week. Officials in Beijing and other capitals see the transits as the “demonstrated resolve” of the United States to keep sea lanes open, retired Air Force Brig. Gen. David Stillwell, the current assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, said Monday at the Brookings Institution. The United States’ long-term commitment to the Indo-Pacific is demonstrated to allies and partners in the region through the … Continue reading U.S. Indo-Pacific Diplomacy Efforts Hinge On FONOPS, Humanitarian Missions