China has announced that it has retrieved a submarine-detecting sonar device that the United States allegedly dropped in a disputed area of the South China Sea.
An undated video uploaded on Wednesday by “Yuyuan Dantian,” a social media account affiliated with state-run China Central Television, shows what appears to be a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance plane dropping several cylindrical objects.
One of the vessels reportedly crashed in waters near Second Thomas Reef in the Spratly Islands, known in Beijing as Ren’ai Reef, the hotly contested site of the current territorial dispute between China and the Philippines and the site of violent clashes between the two militaries last week.
Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Juan Sebastian Sua/U.S. Navy
“After the incident, the China Coast Guard immediately went to the scene and collected and inspected the unidentified electronic devices in accordance with laws and regulations,” Yuyuan Tan said.
The 40-second video then cuts to a battery label on an electronic device that lists Ultra Electronics as the manufacturer. Ultra Electronics is a UK-based defence company that develops a range of naval products, from radar and electronic warfare products to sonobuoys and electromagnetic interference filters.
Newsweek China’s Foreign Ministry and the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Command have been contacted in writing for comment.
Yuyuan Tanden quoted Chinese maritime expert Yang Xiao as saying the U.S. military could use such devices to detect Chinese submarines and also to send signals to disrupt Chinese operations.
The video points out that sonar can interfere with the echolocation abilities of dolphins and whales.
“The US military aircraft dropped the probe in the waters near Ren’ai Reef in the South China Sea,” the video states. “Not only was the environment beautiful, but schools of dolphins could also be seen playing.”
“Sonar noise interferes with the echolocation systems of dolphins and other marine animals, causing them to become disoriented and sometimes even beached.”
The Strategic Situational Survey Initiative, a think tank founded by China’s Peking University, reported earlier this year that the United States sent “large reconnaissance aircraft” such as P-8s over the South China Sea about 1,000 times last year.
China claims most of the resource-rich waterway, through which an estimated at least a fifth of global trade passes each year.
China’s sweeping claims overlap with the exclusive economic zones of neighboring countries, including the Philippines, a U.S. ally.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom, seeking common ground and finding connections.
