BEIJING: Beijing hit back on Monday at allegations it was “militarising” the South China Sea after landing bombers at an airbase in the contested waters, accusing Washington instead of raising tensions with its own military footprint.
China on Friday for the first time landed several combat aircraft — including the long-range, nuclear strike-capable H-6K — at an island airfield in the sea, triggering international concern.
The move prompted immediate criticism from the US, with a Pentagon spokesman condemning China’s “continued militarisation of disputed features in the South China Sea”.
But China rejected concerns that the deployment had raised tensions in a region home to vital global shipping routes.
“The South China Sea islands are Chinese territories,” foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a regular briefing.
Lu said moving the bombers into the area was “part of the normal training for the Chinese military”, and that the US “sending its own warships and planes to the region... poses a danger to other countries”.
Friday’s takeoff and landing drills took place on Woody Island, according to Washington think-tank the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
The island is home to China’s largest base in the Paracel Islands, which are also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan.
Hanoi slammed the drills and demanded Beijing “immediately cease” its military moves in the area, the foreign ministry said in a statement. The exercises “seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty... raising tensions (and) destabilising the region”, it said.
The Philippine government said it was taking “appropriate diplomatic action” to protect the country’s territorial claims in the South China Sea.
“We express our serious concerns anew on its impact on constructive efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque told reporters.
But Roque said the government “does not see any immediate threat,” adding: “We do not consider China to be a threat to our security right now because of our new-found friendship with China.”
“We are taking the appropriate diplomatic action necessary to protect our claims and will continue to do so in the future,” the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Monday.
“We reiterate our commitment to protect every single inch of our territory and areas which we have sovereign rights over,” it added.
The department did not specify what exactly it will do, nor did it single out China, noting: “It is not our policy to publicise every action taken by the Philippine government whenever there are reported developments taking place in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea.”
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a key shipping lane believed to be rich in marine and mineral resources. The other claimants are the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Since 2012, it has stepped up island reclamations and construction in the disputed territories in the South China Sea, including building structures that appear to have military capabilities.
—AFP/dpa
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