Two U.S. Navy ships made a port call in Hong Kong on Thursday, the first such visit since China turned a U.S. aircraft carrier away from visiting the territory five months ago.
The two warships, carrying about 3,600 sailors and marines in total, are the amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard and the amphibious transport dock Green Bay.
Rear Adm. Marc Dalton, head of the U.S. 7th Fleet's amphibious force, said the ships were recently operating in the Western Pacific, in the vicinity of Guam and Okinawa, but had not experienced any trouble with Chinese vessels operating in the same area.