China returns seized underwater drone to U.S.
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China returns the underwater drone it captured in its waters to the United States, December 20, 2016. [Photo: xilu.com]

China has handed over the underwater drone it captured in its waters to the United States, according to a statement posted on the website of China's Ministry of National Defense on Tuesday, December 20, 2016.

The handover was carried out smoothly earlier on Tuesday in the South China Sea, said the statement.

On Friday, December 16, the Pentagon lodged a formal request to China to return the underwater drone that was seized by the Chinese navy in the South China Sea one day earlier.

Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Yang Yujun said late Saturday that China has decided to hand over the device to the US.

Yang noted in a statement that in order to prevent the device from posing safety threats to navigation, a Chinese naval lifeboat verified and examined the device in a professional and responsible manner.

"Upon examination, the device was identified as an underwater drone of the United States. Both sides have been maintaining communication on the issue," said Yang.

In making the statement, the spokesperson also criticized the U.S. military for frequently dispatching vessels and aircraft to carry out close-in reconnaissance and military surveys within Chinese waters.

In the meantime, the Chinese Foreign Ministry dismissed comments by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, saying the discovery of the drone was not "an act of stealing," as Trump suggested in a post on Twitter.

Author： 　　　Source：CRI　　　 Editor：Yang Fan