WASHINGTON: A US aircraft carrier group sailed into the South China Sea on a so-called “freedom of navigation” exercise, the first routine operation in the region under new President Joe Biden.

Led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt, the carrier strike group entered the area Saturday, the US Indo-Pacific Command said, the same day Taiwan reported multiple Chinese jets and bombers had flown into its air defense zone.

“It’s great to be in the South China Sea again, conducting routine operations, promoting freedom of the seas, and reassuring allies and partners,” said Rear Admiral Doug Verissimo, commander of Carrier Strike Group Nine.

Beijing lays claims to nearly all of the South China Sea — despite Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam also saying parts belong to them. China’s foreign ministry spokesman called the routine US exercises a “show of force and not conducive to the peace and stability of the region”.