Ah! The opera continues to play out.

Now we have this amazing event:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/13/us-usa-china-ships-idUSBRE9BC0T520131213

It those two ships did collide and it resulted in one of them sinking with all hands lost . . . what would be the consequence?

Whatever USS Cowpens was doing, it was certainly not in American international waters.
It was in Chinese international waters.
So, what was it doing nearly 9,000 miles away from its home waters?
Ever heard of a Chinese warship in American international waters, say, 250 miles off San Diego, about to collide with a U.S. warship?