The US Navy announced Tuesday that USS Ronald Reagan entered the South China Sea as part of a periodic mission.

The Navy said in a statement, "While in the South China Sea, the strike group is conducting maritime security operations, which include flight operations with fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, maritime strike exercises, and coordinated tactical training between surface and air units."

Ensuring a #FreeAndOpenIndoPacific. #USS Ronald Reagan @Gipper_76 conducts flight ops in the #SouthChinaSea June 14, while providing a combat-ready force that protects & defends the U.S., as well as the collective maritime interests of its regional allies & partners. pic.twitter.com/EkCjk3Cclo

— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) June 14, 2021

Beijing says that it has sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, complaining about the US activities in the area that makes for an arena of attraction with the US.

China considers navigation in the waters of those islands an infringement of its sovereignty, while the United States and other countries consider the region to be international waters open to all.

The US 7th Fleet had confirmed that Washington would commit to "flying, sailing, and operating anywhere permitted by international law."

In February, the Chinese Navy asked a US warship to leave a disputed area in the China Sea, in the first such tension between the two sides since Joe Biden assumed the presidency.

The US Navy announced at the time that it deployed additional forces in the north of the Gulf region in the Middle East after withdrawing USS Nimitz and its accompanying group to the alignment of the South China Sea.

The US Navy announced in January that USS Theodore Roosevelt had entered the South China Sea. 

"The offensive group has entered the waterway to conduct routine operations, ensure freedom of the seas, and build partnerships that enhance maritime security," the Indo-Pacific Command said.