China is reportedly going to return a U.S. underwater drone it had seized off the coast of the Phillippines late last week, as reported by ABC News. This may not be the end of the situation, as CNN adds that Chinese state media believes the drone may be a part of a larger U.S. surveillance system.
Chinese seizure of an underwater drone last week caused a bit of controversy. The seizure occurred as the U.S. and Chinese relationship grew rockier, and Donald Trump’s “unpresidented” tweet may not have helped matters. It now appears that an agreement has been struck between the two countries, as ABC News notes that the drone could be returned as early as Tuesday.
And the situation may be even more complicated, as Chinese state media believes the U.S. has not been forthcoming about the use of the drone. U.S. officials maintain the drone was just doing routine operations, but China doesn’t think so. People’s Daily, the state-run media outlet, insisted that the drone was used to “contain” China, according to CNN:
“The US side played down its drone activities, but its intention behind them cannot be concealed. The drone that emerged from the South China Sea is just the tip of the iceberg in the US military strategy on China.”
Detail surrounding how the drone will exactly be delivered back to the U.S. have not been decided yet, but a Pentagon official said it will happen “soon.”