China Agrees To Return The Captured U.S. Drone

Reports said on Sunday that China has agreed to return the US underwater drone that it seized in the international waters last week. Details were not immediately available on when or how the drone might be returned. Earlier, China's defence ministry said authorities decided on the return, but criticised the US for having "hyped up" the issue.

President-elect Donald Trump had weighed in on the incident, calling China's action "unprecedented". Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Sr Col Yang Yujun said-

Upon confirming that the device was a US underwater drone, the Chinese side decided to transfer it to the US side in an appropriate manner…China and the US have been communicating about this process. It is inappropriate -- and unhelpful for a resolution -- that the US has unilaterally hyped up the issue. We express our regret over that.