UK rebuffs Chinese media warning over carrier task force

HMS Queen Elizabeth has been coordinating exercises with the navies of India and Malaysia in recent days. - AFP/ROYAL NAVY

LONDON (AFP): The UK government Friday (July 30) denied it was provoking Beijing with the deployment of its most powerful navy task force in a generation, after Chinese state media issued a blunt warning.

The flotilla has entered the disputed South China Sea after exercises with Asian allies. It is led by the new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, and comprises other Royal Navy vessels plus US and Dutch warships.