China urges US to provide details on submarine collision in South China Sea

US submarine collided with an unidentified object in the South China Sea on October 2. According to Chinese state media, Global Times, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian has asked the US to reveal facts about the submarine, including its aim and whether it caused a nuclear leak or harmed the marine ecosystem. The disaster occurred as tensions between the United States and China grew over the Chinese military's incursions into Taiwan's Air Defense Integration Zone (ADIZ).

According to the US Navy, a nuclear-powered attack submarine, the USS Connecticut, collided with an unknown underwater object while travelling through international seas in the Pacific Ocean last Saturday. The Navy's Pacific Fleet stated, "The Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Connecticut (SSN 22) struck an object while submerged on the afternoon of October 2, while operating in international waters in the Indo-Pacific region."

Connecticut was operating in the waters of the South China Sea

According to CNN, Connecticut was operating in the waters of the South China Sea as part of Carrier Strike Group 21, a massive multinational show of force in the region conducted by the United States and its allies. Ships from the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, Canada and the Netherlands, as well as three aircraft carriers, are now training near the area.

The majority of the South and East China Seas are considered international seas by the United States, while China claims dominance over much of the region. In recent years, the United States and its allies have expanded sail-bys in both seas, eliciting criticism from China. The United States and China often accuse each other of conducting unsafe or unprofessional military drills in the region.

The collision in 2005

The most severe recent collision involving a US Navy submarine was in 2005 when the USS San Francisco collided with an underwater mountain at full speed. According to CBS News, one sailor was killed, and most of the crew was injured in the disaster. The captain and many other senior officers were removed from their duties after it was discovered that they were utilising old seafloor charts despite having up-to-date maps on hand. That incident occurred close to the US island of Guam, thousands of miles east of the tense waters off China's coast.

(Inputs from ANI)

Image: Twitter/@USPacificFleet, AP