http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/article69072667.html

And so began an elaborate diplomatic dance.

“This is U.S. Warship 62. Good morning, sir. It is a pleasant day at sea, over.”

No response.

“This is U.S. Warship 62. Good morning, sir. It is a pleasant day to be at sea, over.”

Still no response.

Renshaw turned to Li. “You’re up,” he said. “They can’t pretend they don’t speak Chinese.”

“Chinese Warship 575, this is U.S. Warship 62,” Li said in Chinese. “Today is a sunny day for a sea voyage, over.”

More minutes ticked by. Ensign Anthony Giancana, the junior officer on deck for the morning, was getting antsy. “This is like Opening Day,” he said to no one in particular. “We’ve done spring training.”

Suddenly, the radio crackled again as the frigate responded in Chinese: “U.S. Warship 62, this is Chinese Warship 575. Today’s weather is great. It is a pleasure to meet you at sea.”

Li responded, also in Chinese: “This is U.S. Warship 62. The weather is indeed great. It is a pleasure to meet you, too, over.”

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Apparently the Chinese ship wanted an answer to that question as well.

“U.S. Navy Warship 62, this is Chinese Navy Warship 575,” came a new message. “Do you continue to have long-term voyage at sea? Over.”

Another no-no. Telling the Chinese the intended duration of the trip could be an inherent acknowledgment that they had the right to know, Renshaw said. And that is not considered freedom of navigation.

“This is U.S. Navy Warship 62,” Renshaw responded. “Roger, all of our voyages are short because we enjoy our time at sea no matter how long we are away from home. Over.”

As it happened, the Chinese ship had a ready answer for that.

“U.S. Navy Warship 62, this is Chinese Navy Warship 575,” came the reply. “Copy that I will be staying along with you for the following days. Over.”

That was Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Chinese frigate was replaced by a destroyer, which followed the Navy warship until midnight Thursday, when the U.S. vessel exited the South China Sea.