The commander of the U.S. Navy Seventh Fleet, Vice Admiral Robert Thomas, has called on Southeast Asian nations to form a combined maritime force to patrol the waters of South China Sea.

Speaking at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition in Malaysia, Thomas liken the effort to the counter-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden.

“If Asean members were to take the lead in organizing something along those lines, trust me, the U.S. 7th Fleet would be ready to support,” Thomas added.

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