it's not just about the south china sea. and this is the global responsibility thing. south china sea to the batic to the arctic. you see what's very interesting is the level of military training exercises, the u.s. just sent an attacks to breach through to the p.r., the russians planting flags. pat: there are ships amassed again. tom: it's the great game again. the 19th century has returned. clarence: the jets are buzzing our ships. pat: that's our ship sitting there again in the baltic sea near leningrad. if he russian ship was sitting in florida, you think some navy guy might buzz that? john: will panama reap the economic benefits of broadening the canal? yes or no? pat: undeniably, it's going to get some benefits and frankly, i hope there are a lot. eleanor: yes. tom: very big benefits. clarence: they're ahead of the game right now. ironically, those also reports about el nino causing a slowdown in the expansion of the canal. there's another case of where climate is having an impact. john: yes, arctic shipping is many decades away if ever. and the nicaraguan canal i

china's recent very assertive moves in the south china sea have also been high on the agenda. >> that's right. was quitester abe insistent that china's actions in the south china sea were quite high on the agenda. because this summit is taking place in asia, although china is not part of the g7, but also because japan has its own territorial dispute over some islands. they will return to china's increasingly asserted claims to parts of the south china sea tomorrow, but china will not actually be named in the final communique. there will be a lot of talk about respecting the rule of law and also keeping maritime lanes open to trade. despite that rather weak statement that we are expecting tomorrow, china has reacted angrily. the official news agency has accused japan of using the g-7's him and to try to isolate china diplomatically. >> thank you. every day overcrowded boats leave the shores of libya full of desperate migrants willing to risk everything for a shot at a new life in europe. those boats randomly fall prey to the choppy mediterranean waters and we seldom witnessed the drama t

want to over these rocs in the south china sea? on the other hand if you are the u.s. do you want to let china just take over this region and then wake up one day and say it is now china's sphere of influence. it is a risk. it is interesting how this will play out. >> that's it for our time this week. >> today we sort of catch up to the 20th century. we have been the invisible half the congress of past seven years. we've watched our house colleagues with interests. the tv coverage of members of our colleagues in the house. robert byrd: we create another historic moment in the relationship between congress and technological advancements in communications through radio and television. our executive branch began. on television. today marks the first time in our legislative branch in its entirety will appear on that medium of communication through which most americans get their information about what our government and our country does. c-span marks the 30th anniversary of our live coverage of the u.s. senate. coverage from our the senate floor. do you trust william jeffers

does that settle it, these disputed claims in the south china sea? >> no, not at all. erritory on an ocean or a sea that has any experience with maritime claims. this is just china -- lou: i would guess -- >> in the third world and where it delivers a lot of foreign aid. the fact is these are very real territorial disputes, and china's not waiting around for negotiation or adjudication. they're creating not just facts on the ground, they're creating the ground. they are making it a chinese lake. lou: most people do not realize the dimensions of this thing. we're talking about some substantial, a quarter to a third of crude oil transiting the south china seas, finished products that are used all over the world as well as raw materials. i mean, this is an essential, essential navigational dispute, a critical dispute involving essential materials and products and commodities necessary to global commerce. and the chinese, obviously, mean for the united states to have to back it up, its intervention in the dispute. >> no, absolutely. all the oil and natural that comes from t

g7 leaders are expected to discuss the south china sea issue. >>> a u.s. navy commander says the u.s. will challenge what it considers to be excessive maritime claims in the south china sea. the u.s. navy's seventh fleet flagship, "uss blue ridge" made a port call in shanghai on friday for military exchange. fleet commander joseph aucoin spoke to the navy about operations in the south china sea. >> we will sail and operate wherever international law allows. we do challenge excessive maritime claims. >> his comments were apparently in response to china's increased maritime activity in the region. beijing officials last month rejected a u.s. aircraft carrier's request to make a port call in hong kong. the commander said the navys of both countries will not let that minor disagreement damage their relationship. aucoin stressed the importance of deepening u.s./china military exchange. the chinese navy plans to participate in a massive u.s.-led multinational drill this year. china took part in the exercise two years ago. >>> myanmar's defacto leader, aung san su

relations between the two countries are improving amid the changing security environment in the south china sea. china claims almost the entire maritime area as its own, while vietnam and other southeast asian countries claim parts of it. on monday, obama announced a complete lifting of an embargo on sales of lethal weapons to vietnam. the measure was put in place in 1984 amid concerns over the country's human rights record, but u.s. lawmakers and activists urged president obama to press for more progress before lefting the ban. on tuesday obama said he had significant concerns over civil liberties in vietnam. he mentioned that several activists had been invited but were prevented from meeting him. >> i think it's an indication of the fact that although there has been some modest progress and it is our hope that through some of the legal reforms that are being drafted and passed there will be more progress. there are still folks who find it very difficult to assemble and organize peacefully around issues that they care deeply about. >> obama flew on to ho chi minh city the commercial hub of the

as we have been reporting the tensions in the south china sea over disputed islands between malaysia, philippines, vietnam and china. china set up on some of those islands causing additional tension. i want to bring in nbc's white house correspondent, ron allen. i am talking about the fact that we have learned during this press conference that the u.s. has agreed to lift the sale of military arms to the ban on them to vietnam. that is going to be a big talker today. i think a lot of the people might be surprised that it actually went through. >> indeed. whether it was going to happen on not on the days and weeks leading up to the trip. but that is the announcement. what president obama said about it is that it reflects how far the united states and vietnam have come since the end of the war. a lot has changed. this is a new day. i think president obama would say. to complete the normalization process he saw the lifting of the ban as something else the united states needed to do. what the practical implications of it will be are not clear. it signals how many the nations have come. boe

navy patrol plane over the south china sea. a defense department spokesperson says the incident occurred on tuesday while the u.s. reconnaissance ep 3 aircraft was surveying international airspace. the spokesperson also said the department is addressing the issue through military and diplomatic channels. details are scarce but ap reports that the two shenyang j-11 fighters flew within about 15 meters of the u.s. aircraft. in 2014 a chinese fighter flew dangerously close in the south china sea. in 2001 two jets collided in the same area. last year both sides agreed on rules to avoid accidental encounters by military aircraft. the pentagon says it has seen improvements in china's actions over the past year. a senior chinese official has denounced activists seeking independence for hong kong during a visit to the territory. he is the third highest r ranki member of the chinese communist party. >> translator: a small number of people are resisting the chinese government and pursuing independence for hong kong. >> he says the activi

is taking advantage of vietnam to stir up more troubles in the south china sea. >> china's south chinaunderstanding. >> united states should look at the bigger picture. >> in the name of protecting freedom of navigation. >> stories about china's territorial rights to the waters have flooded chinese state television. what do you think of the south china sea situation. >> translator: on the streets of beijing, many wanted to avoid politics. but retiree had no qualms. the u.s. says these are international waters and not china -- the u.s. is on the other side of the pacific he said. we don't go there. but they come here to meddle in our matters. now that president obama is in japan, for the g7 he will meet with japanese prime minister abe who also has serious concerns about china's claims to the region's waters. >> hillary clinton's campaign is downplaying a report by the state department's inspector general over her use of a private e-mail server. while secretary of state. the report conclude clinton violated the department's cybersecurity guidelines. it points out hackers tried to get in

improvement in the strategic position because acp anomalies important in this rivalry in the south china seaith a contrary to china's aggressive moves, but there is another voice in the administration and outside that says, no, there is a terrible human rights record in vietnam, and by lifting the ban on arms sales, you are rewarding the regime without having made sufficient progress on human rights. president began his foreign-policy agenda in 2009 with the so-called asia-pacific. it is interesting that at the end of the administration, he makes his first trip to vietnam, although the clinton and george w. bush preceded him. guest: in fairness, the president has traveled a lot to asia-pacific regions, india, elsewhere and southeast asia. you are right. this is the first visit by president obama to vietnam, and that whether wondered human rights was one of the reasons he did not go earlier, second they have tried to use the leverage of the visit to push the regime to lift its repressive tactics treatment you saw in the last few days was a prominent political prisoner released days before the

and china will be assessing the new leader's stance on how to break the deadlock in the south china sea. on monday duterte told reporters he would seek multinational talks to discussion disputes over the resource-research waters there. >> i would say to china do not claim anything there. i will not insist, also. but then i will just keep a blind eye. and if you don't want a joint venture, fine. to get the gas and oil. so i'd be happy if i do not produce the hardware, if i just say, well, there are a lot of filipinos that work with you. >>> outgoing president aquino has strengthened military ties with the u.s. in march the philippines agreed with the united states to jointly use five philippine bases including one near the spratly islands in the south china sea. >> the united states congratulations the philippines on holding inclusive and democratic elections. our two nations have strong ties based on our shared respect for democratic values we look forward to continuing the ties. >> we hope the new government will take the appropriate steps with us to deal with the confrontation. >> inv

relations between the two countries are improving as the security environment in the south china sea changes. china claims almost the entire south china sea as its own. vietnam and southeast asian countries claim parts of it. >> it's my belief that with respect to the south china sea, although the united states doesn't support any particular claim, we are supportive of the notion that these issues should be resolved peacefully, diplomatically, in accordance with international norms and rules and not based on who is the bigger party to throw their weight around a little more. >> translator: vietnam highly commands the decision made by the united states to fully lift the ban of lethal weapon sales to vietnam. it reflects the complete normalization of the relationship between the two countries. >> obama's visit comes 41 years after the end of the war. the embargo was put in place in 1984 amid concern over vietnam's human rights record. the u.s. lawmakers and activists were urging obama to press vietnam to make more progress on human rights before lifting it. >>> police in northern thaila

i'm wondering you if you could comment on the south china sea. i just want to ask you -- the philippines has brought an arbitration case against china's claims in the south china sea into the convention under the law of the sea. if the ruling goes in the philippines favor as expected and if china refused to abide by it, what are the implications for the philippines and the claimants of the south china sea and how would this change the u.s. approach in the south china sea? >> thank you. first, i would say something that's incredibly important to us and our partners in two ways. first of all, 25% of all traded goods, 25% of all oil that travels by sea goes through the south china sea. and indeed, one third over all of liquified natural gas. we have no position, as you know, into the petra scandal. this comes a day after the meeting that will vote on whether to proceed on the trial and likely they will vote yes which its rulings are binding on the parties. we have worked very hard to establish skroosz the region and understand that this is an appropr

i'm wondering if you could comment on the south china sea. >> and i just want to ask you , the philippines has brought an arbitration case against china's claims in the south china sea under the united nations convention on the law of the sea. the ruling goes in the philippines favor as expected and if the chairman refuses to abide by it, what are the implications for the philippines and other claimants to the south china sea and how would this change the us approach in the south china sea? >> thank you. first i'd say this is, self china is incredibly important in two ways. first of all, 20 percent of all traded goods, 25 percent of all oil that travels by c goes through the south china sea. and indeed, one third overall of liquefied natural gas. we have no position as you know on the sovereignty claims. were not claimant ourselves but we have a strong interest in the way these trains are routed by any claimant and a very strong interest in maintaining freedom of navigation and making sure disputes are resolved peacefully and countries abide by international law. and these are the very int

china is building a massive fortress in the middle of the south china sea, okay? yet they're ripping no inping m us left and right. we rebuilt china. single handedly what they've

or chased away and the pair i sell islands are its sovereign territory along with most of the south china seailding manmade islands, laying down airstrips, deploying surface-to-air missiles in defiance of competing claims by other regional players. and the u.s. has waded into the fight, challenging china by running freedom of navigation operations in the region and calling for an end to the militarization of the area. washington's message seems to have done little to sway local opinion. >> concerning america's idea of a peaceful solution between vietnam and china, even with this peaceful solution, the rights of vietnam to these islands are undeniable. >> reporter: cnn wasn't allowed to speak to the fishermen without a government minder present. but vietnamese officials are keen to show them off as victims of china's aggression. >> translator: we protect our country for the next generation. >> reporter: it's an elevated calling for the fishermen of a remote island in its ongoing dispute with china, vietnam is mustering defenders wherever it can find them. saima mohsin, cnn. >>> indonesia's mou

increasingly active in the efforts to win indonesia over to their own side as tension increases in the south china sea. chinese president xi jinping and indonesian president joko widodo agreed to step up cooperation between their country's supply industries. china provides anti-missiles to indonesia. the countries are also discussing radio equipment. meanwhile, u.s. president barack obama promised to cooperate in developing equipment for indonesia's navy. the u.s. has already supplied it with fighter aircraft and attack helicopters. japan is also reaching out to indonesia. last december saw the first meeting of the foreign and defense ministers of the two countries. japanese self-defense force personal visited an advanced service belonging to the indonesian navy. japan offers to help the force develop the nautical charts it needs to deploy submarines. >> translator: depending on what the indonesian navy wants, we will consider helping them develop new skills. >> reporter: china is also offering generous support in the form of software. >> reporter: beijing has helped arrange chinese language lessons i

by showing up in vietnam next door to china and on the south china sea, it sends a strategic message.he u.s. does not have any claims in the south china s ea, but it is a very important trade route for the u.s. given the immense void of to and from asia. the u.s. does not want to see anymore strife in that area. by showing up in vietnam and holding hands metaphorically with the vietnamese leadership, president obama is sending a message that the u.s. stands with its allies in the south china sea and will not tolerate further encroachment on shipping areas and an increased militarization of the south china sea, so president obama without doing much of anything militarily is sending a strategic message. angie: traveling with the president, thank you so much for that. other headlines, the san francisco fed president said the economy should be solid enough to merit a great increase this data jobs and inflation are getting closer to central-bank targets. onliams does not vote monetary policy until 2018. investors see a 28% that the fed will raise rates next month. it has noepeated that pla

i can say that in past dialogues on the south china sea it's really has been an issue of discussion. >> he referred to china using coercive tactics. can you explain what that is with what you're referring to? >> we talk about the report but we see china and their forces using tactics such as reclamation, at times some of their vessels and coast guard's acting in unprofessional or assertive manners in the divinity of military forces are fishing vessels with other countries in a way that is designed to attempt to establish a degree of control around disputed areas. as we know to the report it seems to us that these activities are designed to stay below the threshold of conflict and gradually demonstrate and assert claims that other countries dispute. >> have a question not related. for years, this report has seen as a benchmark between china and taiwan's relative military constraints. you said china on average spend 9% or so. has taiwan kept the pace, i have seen statistics indicate of the last decade that it's been relatively flat where china is exponentially increase. what is your tak

abide by the international rules of the road when it comes to resolving competing claims in the south china sea. when you're an economy as large as china, when you're as influential as china is, particularly in that region of the world, then you benefit from the ability of disputes to be resolved without going to war. you benefit from disputes being resolved with the expectation that everybody's going to follow the rules. that's the case we make to china. i think that's an indication of how we're able to work with china, how we welcome a rising china, but, look, we're going to have our differences and we're not going to shy away from expressing those. reporter: quick question on iran. the secretary of state in europe. does the white house want to see more european banks do business in iran? mr. earnest: i think what the white house wants is to fulfill our responsibility to international financial institutions, to describe to them exactly what is allowed and what's not allowed when it comes to doing business with iran. that's something that has been part of not just secretary lue's job descripti

reconnaissance plane in the south china sea. this occurred tuesday according to the official. came within 50 feet of the american aircraft. again, this over the south china sea over the disputed islands china has been constructing air strips and landing military planes on. they're hotly disputed between china and other nations in the region and the u.s. doesn't consider them legitimate chinese territory, wolf. again, we are told two chinese fighter jets, j-11s, came unsafe distance away from a u.s. reconnaissance plane tuesday over the south china sea. my colleague jim sciutto points out this isn't the first time this happened, but the chinese usually resort to warnings for american reconnaissance jets over the radio. they don't fly this close, it is a rare occurrence and we are told that americans are protesting through diplomatic chance. >>> donald trump says he has no problem talking to kim jong-un. will that change after today's foreign policy session with henry kissinger? >>> tensions are boiling over with some democrats, some worry the convention could slide into chaos.

especially in regards to disputed islands in the south china sea. >> 40 years after the vietnam war, the former enemies renegotiated a new alliance. it also included a series of new commercial deals. the key announcement from u.s. president barack obama was ending the arms embargo to the communist country with the caveat over human rights. >> the united states is officially releasing the ban that has been in place for 50 years. sales will need to meet strict requirements but this change will ensure that vietnam has access to arms that they n needo defend itself. the move is seenen as a street - strategic rethink right washington as china continues to assert its territorial rights in the south china sea. the vietnamese people turned out in numbers. they showed their optimism about a new beginning with the united states. anchor: a police officer has been acquitted of all charges in the case of freddie gray which sparked a national debate over police violence. edward nero is one of six officers being charged. a judge today found him not guilty. freddie gray died in april 2015 a week aft

in the south china sea, we talked about the three principles of maritime law. meaning that any claims in maritime areas should be done in international law. force or threat of force should not be used to push through one's claims. peaceful means should be the main way to resolve disputes. these three principles i counted, world leaders agreed, the g7 leaders agreed with me. as for north korea, the nuclear testing in january of this year as well as the repeated testing of elastic missiles following that -- ballistic missiles following that was a situation i explained. the g7 agrees that we cannot tolerate or accept north korea's nuclear program, and we agreed to closely coordinate so that we could hold north korea to its previous commitment. i also explained the definition of the abduction issue for us. the g7 leaders expressed a concern about japan's abduction issue. it has been clearly incorporated to our communicate. -- communique. we were not able to present the crisis that followed the collapse of the lehman brothers. we are not optimistic on the outlook of

. >> the leaders talked about the south china sea. they agreed to urge north not to take what they call provocative action. on the global economy, the leaders talked about the ways to boost it. abe pointed out the world is at a turning point. he said there's a risk of economic crisis if countries fail to take the necessary measures. they agreed on the importance of public an private investment. they decided to leave the timing an scale up to each country. world leader argued that using the word crisis is going too far. they work on how to describe the current situation in the final summit statement that will be released friday. here in japan we're watching to see if that prompts prime minister abe to put off raising japan's consumption tax planned for next april. >> the summit is an opportunity for the host nation to promote itself to the world. japan is taking full advantage. range of events showcasing japanese culture and technology has been put on for visitors and the media. they share a core theme of sustainability. >> the vehicle

, duterte has said he'd talk to china about its expanding claims and military activity in the south china sea. but, if nothing changed, he says he'd sail to one of beijing's new artificial islands and plant the philippine flag. today, china's foreign ministry voiced hope for progress with the new leader. ( translated ): china and the philippines have a traditional friendship. we indeed hope that the new government of the philippines would meet china halfway, taking concrete measures to properly deal with the disputes so as to put the ties of the two countries back on the track of sound development. >> sreenivasan: duterte has also expressed wariness about closer security ties with the u.s., but yesterday, he called for talks to include the u.s., japan and australia. >> sreenivasan: in washington, a white house spokesman said today: "we look forward to strengthening and deepening" ties with the philippines. but policy questions aside, duterte's hard-line approach has sparked concerns that he could be a dictator-in-the-making, in a country with an authoritarian past. in 1972, president ferdinan

and japan over disputes in the south china sea. g says japan is failing to perform its duty by trying to tarnish china's image. the ministry said washington is trying to cause trouble in the area by stepping up its military presence. french andired italian companies to locate the black boxes from flight 804 as the search continues in the eastern mediterranean. the voice and data recorders are presumed to be on the seabed at a depth of 3000 meters. conducted on being the small body parts retrieved so far. the plane was carrying 66 passengers and crew when it crashed en route from paris to cairo. has causedater main part of a riverbank in florence to collapse. the sinkhole appeared on the river arno. power and water supplies were severed, and local people were your homes.ve it is due to break in a 60 senate leader waterpipe, and not because the riverbank is falling away. powered by over 2400 journalists and 150 bureaus around the world, this is bloomberg news. rishaad: up next, spreading its wings, air asia plans to expand its fleet,

also looming over the summit, beijing's posturing in the contested waters of the south china sea. china itself is not a g7 number but the summit is expected to produce a statement on the aggressive expansion by china taking place. reporter: it may look like these chinese tourists are enjoying an idyllic summer holiday. but their presence is as much about politics as it is about pleasure. their results -- it is one of a number of areas controlled by china but claimed i other countries. just under one year ago, the scene near this each looked very different. several clashes erected between chinese and the enemy's vessel's , set off by china's controversial decicision to dril for oil in the disputed waterer. vietnam refused to a accept china's claim to sovereignty, resulting in a standoff which was eventually settled. but analysts say the risk of armed conflict in the region could grope as china becomes more assertive about its territorial claims. beijing defined its territory with the so-called callused tongue, so-called because of its shape. neighboring states like vietnam and the

brunei, cambodia and laos that the territorial disputes over some islands, rocks and shoals in the south china sea are not an issue between china and the association of southeast asian nations, asean, as a whole. at the same time, china consistently relies on asean's deck declaration of parties in the south china sea, citing its endorsement of consul talkingses and negotiations to argue that it's not subject to the binding arbitration brought urn the law of the sea treaty by the philippines. can china have it both ways? is china trying to sideline asean in relation to the south china sea maritime disputes, and what's the administration's response to quad rah lateral consensus between china, brunei, cambodia and laos, and what's the administration's position in resolving the maritime disputes? >> thank you very much. first of all, i appreciate your comments on north korea and agree very much with you that china has a crew anemic role to play -- unique role to play with north korea. we're seeing some positive steps forward in terms of implementation of the security council resolution, but it's not y

china and vietnam have a dispute over islands in the south china sea. the u.s. 's influence in this region by helping the u.s.'s other allies including vietnam. china doesn't always follow the rules. we saw just this past week, chinese planes do this unsafe intercept of a u.s. plane, flying within 50 feet of it. when the president arrived here in hanoi, they took a route that avoided the south china sea altogether. the influence of china is always an issue that overshadows any presidential trip to asia. >>> "saturday night live" getting lots of laughs over the battle between bernie sanders and hillary clinton. that's next. >> what can i get for you two? >> i'll have a beer. a new brand that people are flocking to. something refreshing and revolutionary. something that draws huge crowds. >> i'll have whatever beer no one likes but gets the job done. g and when we actually do is one of the reasons why too many of us aren't prepared for retirement. just start as early as you can. it's going to pay off in the future. if we all start saving a little more today, we'll

we also heard a lot about these tensions that have mounted in the south china sea, particularly duringchecks. -- checks between shinzo abe and barack obama. is urging at peaceful resolution of disputes. coming from his vietnam trip, he is saying that any tensions between china and vietnam in the philippines are not of our making. pushing a little bit of the blame there. is he says that china responsible for resolving these issues. china was pretty -- take a listen. >> the g-7 summit should be focused on global economic management and cooperation. however, as a hosting company -- as a hosting country, japan is being selfish and playing petty games will stop -- petty games. this is not in the interest of the g-7. >> we thought we would keep the -- basic simple of is aiple of conduct, which strategic relationship based upon mutual interest. two leaders already committed to this principle. we are seeing gradual improvement in every aspect of relations. so we will keep this going. meetings onr those friday, that's when president barack obama is going to be toding further left hiroshima. shi

we're going to have intentitens tibet and tensions involving the south china sea. we need to cooperate with china where we can. regional security, energy security. perhaps trade. but we need to manage the differences that are going to exist. so cooperate where we can, manage the differences where they exist. but we will certainly need to maintain a robust -- continue to maintain a robust presence, military presence in the pacific in the form of the 7th fleet to gourd against any chiness efforts to achieve hogemeny in that part of the world. all i'm saying, it's not preordained the united states and china are going to become enemies at least in my opinion if you play our cards right. >> i want to add a little bit to that. the 7 th fleet you mentioned, freedom of navigation operations, what more should we be doing in the south china sea in addition to this question, mr. donilon, should we also be pursuing other asymmetric actions, diplomatic channels in addition to our right of passage exercise? >> we should be doing all the diplomacy we can, absolutely but freedom of

the relationship with vietnam, not because of china's increasing aggressive activities in the south china sead despite that wording china is major concern in this region, china has been converting several south china sea reefs into artificial islands with buildings and artificial airstrips not far away from the vietnamese coast. so the relationship between these former enemies is improving. this is all changing very carefully. diane, phillip. >> that was bob woodruff reporting. >>> now to the latest in the battle for the white house. some new polls are showing donald trump and hillary clinton locked in an extremely tight race. >> our own abc news/washington post poll has donald trump pulling slightly ahead of hillary clinton by two points. that's a statistical dead heat. it's a dramatic shift from march when clinton had a nine-point lead. >> as clinton and trump continue to take verbal swipes at each other, bill clinton is now moving in. in a rare move former president bill clinton actually mentioned donald trump by name. during a campaign stop near bakersfield, california, he blasted the pre

threat posed by militarily aggressive china which is seizing territory in both the east and south china seas>> trevor: there is a big deal, obama selling arms to vietnam and only doing it because china is seizing territory in the south china sea. i love how passive aggressive world leaders are. they're never just, like, yo, china, cut it out! instead, obama is, like, vietnam, i have 34eus also -- china, are you watching? china! just wait. vietnam, i have some -- china, china! vietnam, i have some -- china! yeah, watch, some missiles for you! some missiles! (laughter) you know, politics aside, people, you have to admit barack obama is the coolest president ever. he really is. he plays basketball, he tells jokes. (cheers and applause) you know, he smokes. it's like as if the president were black. just something special. now he's leaving and looks like choosing his replacement is a lot harder than anyone expected because 2016 was hillary's presidency to lose. looks like that's exactly what she's doing. >> for the first time ever it is close. 43.3% to 43.2 -- >> the only time anyone should be st

jon: chinese fighter jets flying over islands in the south china sea. hy the us says the region is fair game. >> heather: tensions rising in the south china sea. china scrambling fighter jets after a us missile destroyer sale within 12 nautical miles of a disputed island. really, just a coral reef that has been built up into an island by the chinese. chinese officials say the vessel was in an area without its permission but the us says it will operate with wherever international law allows it to operate. china claims the islands belong to them though that itself is widely disputed. china says the us presence there prove that its military buildup is now necessary. joining usnow , captain chuck nash, retired navy captain and a military analyst. captain ^ what is the significance of what china did to our us naval ships to scramble to the area until we finallyleft . >> i think they ar that anytime we come into an area they lay claim to, they are going to react to it and actually, what we need to keep doing is exactly what we are doing. the united states is a

, the military confronting the chinese with its other regional partners over this area in the south china sea. however, president obama in his remarks this morning in vietnam again criticized china's growing militarization of that part of the south china sea. >> there is, i think, a genuine mutual concern with respect to maritime issues between the united states and vietnam and i've made no secret of that. the united states is going to continue to fly and set courses for our ships as international law allows. reporter: senator john mccain was a naval aviator during the vietnam war, shotgun and tortured there. he was the first to react to this. he says he supports the administration's decision. he wants closer ties between the two militaries and calls vietnam an important regional partner committed to upholding the principles of a rule-based order in the asian-pacific and one of the issues and items holding up this agreement, the decision to allow us companies to sell military hardware to vietnam is vietnam's poor human rights record. president obama acknowledges only modest progress by the vi

is taking advantage of vietnam to stir up more troubles in the south china sea." >> china's south chinaed states should look at a bigger picture -- >> in the name of protecting freedom of navigation. >> reporter: stories about china's territorial right to the waters have flooded chinese state television. what do you think of the south china sea [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: on the streets of beijing, many wanted to avoid politics. >> no, no, no. >> reporter: no? a retiree had no qualms. the u.s. says that these are international waters, and not china's. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: the u.s. is on the other side of the pacific, he said. we don't go there, but they come here to meddle in our matters. now that president obama is in japan for the g7, he'll meet with japanese prime minister abe who says he also has serious concerns about china's claims to the region's waters. gayle? >> thank you. >>> paul mccartney is talking about his own hour of darkness when the beatles broke up. ♪ all the broken hearted people living in the world agree ♪ ♪ there will be an answ