Defense Minister US to South China Sea

US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and his Malaysian colleague Thursday sail along on the American warship Theodore Roosevelt on a journey that the tension over claims in the South China Sea marks.

Ash and the Malaysian Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, have attended a meeting of regional defense ministers in Malaysia, together with China's defense chief, where the issue of the South China Sea was also discussed.

Last week led a patrol of a US warship in the disputed Spratly islands in the area have a diplomatic row. China summoned the US ambassador on the carpet and called the action " extremely irresponsible ".