China on Tuesday said that a US navy vessel, which conducted activities in China's exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in the South China Sea, violated the international and Chinese law.

"China has lodged a solemn representation to the United States as the USNS Impeccable conducted activities in China's exclusive economic zones in the South China Sea without China's permission," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu told a regular news briefing.

"We demand that the United States put an immediate stop to related activities and take effective measures to prevent similar acts from happening," Ma said.

Earlier, a Chinese embassy official has said the United States should stop its illegal activities inside China's exclusive economic zones, after the US Defense Department claimed a US navy ship had been harassed by Chinese vessels.

An unnamed official at the Chinese Embassy in Washington said US navy ships have been illegally surveying in China's exclusive economic zones in recent years, in contravention of international maritime law and Chinese law. He rejected US claims that its ships were in international waters at the time of the recent incident.

The embassy official said China rejected the unwarranted accusations of the US and urged the US to stop its illegal surveying and other activities that might destabilize Sino-US relations.

Chinese law enforcement departments have regularly sent ships to police the economic zones, according to the website of the Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television (news.ifeng.com).

The Pentagon accused that Chinese ships, including a naval vessel, harassed the USNS Impeccable in international waters on Sunday.

A senior US Defense Department official said Monday that five Chinese vessels "shadowed and aggressively maneuvered" close to the USNS Impeccable.

But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said "the US claims are gravely in contravention of the facts and confuse black and white and they are totally unacceptable to China."

He added that the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Law on the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Continental Shelf of the People's Republic of China, and the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on the Management of Foreign-related Marine Scientific Research, have clear regulations on foreign vessels' activities in China's exclusive economic zones. The Chinese government always handles such activities strictly in accordance with these laws and regulations. 

"It is our sovereignty for Chinese vessels to conduct activities in the country's special economic zone, and such activities are justified," Wang Dengping, political commissar of the Armament Department of Navy of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, told Xinhua News Agency on the sidelines of the parliament's annual full session.

The Impeccable is one of six surveillance ships that gather underwater acoustical data, according to the US Department of Defense website.

US embassy officials have lodged a protest with the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Defense Department officials have protested to the Chinese embassy in the US.

The incident comes just weeks after China and the USA resumed military talks, which were suspended in November 2008 after the US announced fresh arms sales to Taiwan.

The US and Chinese military forces faced off in 2001 after a US spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet, killing the pilot. The US plane made an emergency landing on Hainan Island. The 24 crew members were released after the US apologized for the incident.

(China.org.cn by Zhang Ming'ai March 10, 2009)