Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, according to two US officials, in a move likely to anger Beijing.

The U.S. officials said the USS Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the USS Antietam came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands.

Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two U.S. officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

The U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The U.S. military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.