Chinese naval generals yesterday said the USNS Impeccable had acted "like a spy", and defended the navy's interception as "totally within our rights".

Vice-Admiral Jin Mao, former vice-commander of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) navy, said that the American vessel is not just a surveillance ship, but a spy ship.

"What was the ship doing? Anyone with eyes can see, and our navy can see even more clearly," Jin told China Daily yesterday on the sidelines of the ongoing session of the National People's Congress.