Beijing has options if US escalates challenge to its claims in South China Sea
China could send more ships and aircraft - or even copy the Russians who rammed US ships - but armed conflict is unlikely, analysts say
China has a range of options to counter an escalating US military challenge to its territorial claims in the South China Sea, ranging from dispatching more warships to conducting military drills - and, if necessary, ramming the ships, mainland analysts say.
Beside warnings, the PLA could deploy warships and military aircraft to expel the destroyer USS Lassen if it keeps patrolling within the 12-nautical-mile limit of Chinese-controlled islands in the region, said Li Jie , a naval expert based in Beijing.
Citing an incident between the US and Soviet navies in 1988, "China could also initiate a measured collision at the most critical moment if the US warship refuses to leave after being expelled," Li said.
On February 12 of that year, the cruiser USS Yorktown and the destroyer Caron entered the seven nautical mile limit of the former USSR naval base at Sevastopol, a Black Sea port on the Crimean Peninsula that itself is now the centre of a territorial dispute between Russia and Ukraine.
After several warnings were ignored, the Soviet frigate Bezzavetny was sent to ram both US warships, forcing them to leave, which was seen as a move to push the US navy to comply with international maritime law.
Sun Zhe, the director of the Centre for US-China Relations at Tsinghua University, said once China deployed warships or aircraft to the waters, tensions in the South China Sea would escalate.
"[China] may resort to locking its radar on the US ship, or declare a drill in the area or use military or even civilian vessels to expel the US warship," Sun said, adding that any escalation would become "a test" for both Beijing and Washington.