China vows to continue construction in disputed sea
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This aerial photograph taken from a military aircraft reportedly shows China’s construction on Mischief Reef in the South China Sea. ©AFP
Beijing has pledged to continue its construction activities in the South China Sea despite an international court ruling against its claims to rights in the disputed waters.
“We will never stop our construction on the Nansha Islands halfway,” Wu Shengli, the Commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy told US counterpart Admiral John Richardson, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Beijing has been turning reefs into artificial islands in the Nansha chain, known as Spratly, by China’s rivals.
Last week, The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that Beijing’s claims to islands in the South China Sea had no legal basis, siding with the Philippines that had filed the complaint.
The ruling said China’s construction on Mischief Reef had “violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights with respect to its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.”
China, which made clear from the start that it would not comply with any decisions by the court, slammed the verdict as an attempt to strip China of its historic sovereignty and maritime rights.
The top military official further described the islands as “China’s inherent territory,” saying Beijing’s “necessary construction on the islands is reasonable, justified and lawful.”
ME
