[Greysard]

an intense war of words developed with Defense Secretary Ash Carter insisting that the US would sail and fly anywhere it pleased

He said that???

[amorphous]

Yep.

[amorphous]

Defense Secretary Ash Carter publicly criticized China for expanding a chain of artificial islands in the South China Sea, and declared that the U.S. wouldn’t shy away from confronting Beijing...

http://www.wsj.com/articles/defense-chiefs-clash-over-south-china-sea-1432949322