US navigation game not good for better relations

So, again, a US Navy warship conducted a "freedom of navigation operation" close to a Chinese reef in the South China Sea. Such navigation in itself is worth no fuss, even if it is a first since Donald Trump assumed the US presidency.

A real "freedom of navigation operation" may be harmless. But it will be hardly distinguishable from an innocent passage in the South China Sea. All because freedom of navigation has never been an issue in those waters.

Using such operation as an excuse appears particularly ridiculous as the once tense situation there has conspicuously defused because countries in the region have agreed to resolve their maritime disputes with China through dialogue.