China is increasingly harassing ships and aircraft operating in international waters and airspace as it ups its bully tactics against neighbors, the State Department’s top diplomat for East Asia and the Pacific said last week. Daniel Kritenbrink, the assistant secretary for the region, said the United States made clear in its recent meetings with top Chinese foreign ministry officials that it “rejects the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China’s] claims in the South China Sea.” Kritenbrink referred to China’s rejection of a 2016 international arbitration panel’s denial of its territorial claims to waters and maritime features like reefs close to the Philippines … Continue reading China Upping Bullying Tactics Against Neighbors, Says Top State Department Diplomat