U.S sent 100,000 military forces to South China Sea in a move to increase its presence in the region, against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.
And the spokeswoman told Lead Stories that it\s innacurate to say the ships were just deployed to the area -- describing instead the Navy\s "continued operational presence in the South China Sea.", The claim originated in a video (archived here) posted to YouTube by US DOT COM on April 22, 2020, titled "Tension SIC Escalate (April 23,2020) : US Deploys 100,000 Military to South China Sea Amid Pandemic". It opened:, Click below to watch the video on YouTube:, , The YouTube video and its commentary claim the U.S. is seeking to take control in the South China Sea region while the world is distracted by the coronavirus. But in an emailed statement to Lead Stories, the U.S Indo-Pacific command spokeswoman described the operation as one that exists "to promote freedom of navigation and overflight, and the international principles that underpin security and prosperity for the Indo-Pacific.", The background here is a long-running regional dispute over control of the South China Sea. China claims sovereignty over much of the region -- a claim that Brunei, Malaysia, The Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam all reject, according to the The New York Times on April 21. That story read, in part:, Last month, China opened two new research stations on artificial reefs it has built on maritime turf claimed by the Philippines and others. The reefs are also equipped with defense silos and military-grade runways., Over the weekend, the Chinese government announced that it had formally established two new districts in the South China Sea that include dozens of contested islets and reefs. Many are submerged bits of atoll that do not confer territorial rights, according to international law.", Also in the Times April 21 story is this from Peter Jennings, a former Australian defense official who is the executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.:, "It\s a quite deliberate Chinese strategy to try to maximize what they perceive as being a moment of distraction and the reduced capability of the United States to pressure neighbors.", See who is sharing it (it might even be your friends...) and leave the link in the comments.:, Lead Stories is working with the CoronaVirusFacts/DatosCoronaVirus Alliance, a coalition of more than 100 fact-checkers who are fighting misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about the alliance here., Mary Acosta, a staff writer and fact-checker for Lead Stories, is a former copy editor at CNN International., She was based at the network’s headquarters in Atlanta. Prior to working at CNNI she was a writer, writer-producer, and copy editor at CNN. She was part of teams that won Emmy Awards for coverage of Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 terror attacks., Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, deceptive or\n      inaccurate stories (or media) making the rounds on the internet.\n      \n      Spotted something? Let us know!., Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, deceptive or\n        inaccurate stories (or media) making the rounds on the internet.\n        \n        Spotted something? Let us know!.
Fact Check: U.S. Did NOT Send '100,000 Military' to South China Sea Amid Pandemic | Lead Stories