US deploys warships to patrol SChina Sea, heating up tensions with Beijing

MOSCOW: US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, along with the guided-missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer began to patrol the South China Sea amid possible escalation of a conflict between the US and China over the region's disputed territories. US officials have called the maneuvers a "routine operation."

The operation came a few days after the Chinese Foreign Ministry warned Washington against undermining China's sovereignty in the region.