U.S. ship violated sea laws, China says

BEIJING, May 7 (UPI) -- A U.S. surveillance ship confronted by Chinese fishing vessels in the Yellow Sea violated international and Chinese laws, China's Foreign Ministry said.

The Pentagon said the Victorious was on routine operations in international waters when it was confronted by two vessels Friday about 68 miles off the China coast, forcing the U.S. ship's crew to sound the alarm and use fire hoses to prevent the Chinese boats from advancing.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu disagreed, saying the ship "conducted activities in China's exclusive economic zone in the Yellow Sea without China's permission," China Daily reported Thursday.

"China has expressed concern over this issue," the spokesman said.

China handles foreign vessels' activities in its exclusive economic zones in accordance with the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and relevant domestic laws, Ma said.

"We demand that the U.S. take effective measures to prevent similar acts from happening," he said.

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said defense officials were "exploring ways to handle this diplomatically." He said the boats withdrew after a Chinese military ship responded to a U.S. call for assistance.