A US destroyer sailed near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea on Wednesday, the US Navy's 7th Fleet announced, days after China imposed new maritime identification rules that include the disputed body of water.The USS Benfold, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, sailed within 19.3 kilometres of Mischief Reef, a portion of the Spratly Islands upon which the Chinese have built military facilities."Under international law as reflected in the Law of the Sea Convention, features like Mischief Reef that are submerged at high tide in their naturally formed state are not entitled to a territorial sea," a statement from 7th Fleet read following the freedom of navigation operation.
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