China has seized "unidentified" equipment it found in the South China Sea, the influential state-run tabloid the Global Times said, a day after US officials said a Chinese warship had taken an American underwater drone.

The Global Times cited a Chinese military source as saying Beijing believed the incident involving the US drone, which triggered a formal diplomatic protest and a demand for its return, would be resolved "smoothly".

It said the equipment, which US officials said was deployed by an American oceanographic vessel, was checked to prevent any navigational issues in the disputed waters.

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