China accuses US of 'lack of transparency' over sub accident

BEIJING — China connected Tuesday accused the U.S. of a “lack of transparency and responsibility” regarding an mishap successful the South China Sea involving a Navy submarine past month.

At a regular briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the U.S. should supply afloat details of the incidental that has revived the quality betwixt the 2 countries implicit the strategical waterway.

“We erstwhile again impulse the U.S. to springiness a elaborate relationship of the accident,” helium said.

Wang described what helium called a “lack of transparency and responsibility” by the U.S. successful pursuing up with the incident.

He said the U.S. has truthful acold failed to connection “a wide explanation” of what the Navy atomic submarine was doing successful the area, arsenic good arsenic “the circumstantial determination of the accident, whether it was successful different country’s exclusive economical portion oregon adjacent territorial waters, whether it caused a atomic leak oregon damaged marine environment.”

China claims sovereignty implicit virtually the full marine area, done which trillions of dollars of planetary commercialized walk each year. Six governments successful each assertion islands, atolls and exclusive economical zones successful the sea, portion the U.S. insists that state of navigation beryllium maintained, reinforcing that with regular subject flights and Naval patrols and grooming missions astir the region.

Two Navy officials speaking connected information of anonymity connected Monday said the work had determined the atomic powered USS Connecticut struck a seamount, oregon underwater mountain.

The Navy has yet to afloat explicate however oregon wherefore the sub struck the seamount oregon to uncover the grade of harm to the Seawolf-class submarine.

The Navy has said the submarine’s atomic reactor and propulsion strategy were not damaged. The collision caused a tiny fig of mean and insignificant injuries to the crew. USNI News, which was archetypal to study that the sub had struck a seamount, said harm to the guardant conception of the submarine damaged its ballast tanks.

The incidental happened connected Oct. 2 but was not reported by the Navy until 5 days later. The vas sailed to Guam for a harm assessment, wherever it remains.