Troops forced to serve apart from their dependents will now get up to $400 a month in extra financial help.
The U.S. Navy said the ship “was conducting routine operations in international waters ... consistent with international law.”
China has stood by its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, clashing with its neighbors and drawing in the U.S., Manila’s treaty ally.
The Senate struck down a bill from Sen. Rand Paul that would have required the U.S. to remove troops from Niger in the wake of a coup.
