China says it warned away U.S. warship in South China Sea, U.S. denies

FOLLOW ON Advertisement The guided missile destroyer USS Benfold arrives at port in Qingdao, China, on Aug. 8, 2016. (Borg Wong / AP) BEIJING — Chinese forces followed and warned away a U.S. warship which entered waters near the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, the country’s military said on Thursday, but the U.S. Navy denied the ship had been warned off. The Southern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army said the USS Benfold “illegally” sailed into Chinese territorial waters without permission, violating the country’s sovereignty, and that Chinese naval and air forces tracked the ship. “We solemnly…