The Pentagon is planning to launch surveillance aircraft and more aggressive naval operations near the disputed areas of the South China Sea to slow down China's territorial advances.

The challenge for Pentagon lies in finding effective tactics that will not trigger a military conflict amid China's increasingly tense relations with Vietnam and the Philippines.

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The existing dispute in the Southeast Asian nations is one of the subjects of the annual U.S.-China talks called Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) which began on Wednesday in Beijing, The Financial Times detailed.

U.S. secretary of state John Kerry and Treasury secretary Jack Lew led the U.S. delegation in the meeting and are tasked to bring up American concerns about China's territorial claims and cyber espionage activities. They will also attempt strengthen the already frail ties with Beijing.

The U.S.' alliances in Asia are being seen by China as a way to contain the latter's rise. China's ire was also provoked when Washington indicted Chinese army officials over cyber hacking charges.

In March, the U.S. flew surveillance planes at low altitude over the disputed Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea as part of the new tactics to deter China and to make their presence known. Chinese ships were spotted blocking the Philippines' attempt to supply marines who were transporting supplies to a ship that ran aground in 1999 on disputed land.

The U.S. is trying to send a message to China that they know what it is doing and that they will use their capacity to inflict consequences for aggressive moves, according to an ex-Pentagon officer familiar with the situation.

Washington could publicize footage or photos of Chinese vessels harassing Filipino and Vietnamese fishermen to force them to think twice about their maritime actions.

Another tactic is to develop a regional system that would allow western Pacific governments to relay detailed information on the location of vessels in the area. The Philippines, Japan, and other nations in the region already received improved radar and monitoring equipment by the U.S. and a broader regional sharing network is now in the works.

In addition, the Pentagon plans to fly B-52s and send naval vessels near disputed regions in a calculated show of force. To deter China's increasing aggressiveness in the South China Sea, the U.S. also plans to deploy its coast guard and escort fishermen into areas where the Chinese have already expelled them.

Tagssurveillance, US-China relations, territorial disputes, US