Beijing claimed that Beijing is entitled to construct defense structures on its own territory
China has rejected claims that it is engaged in a major military buildup after a senior US commander accused the country of deploying an arsenal of weapons to several islands in the South China Sea and “destabilizing”The region.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin addressed reporters Tuesday to respond to accusations made by US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral John Aquilino about China’s conduct “the largest military buildup since World War II,”It also includes islets on its southern coast.
“A sovereign country is naturally entitled to deploy necessary defense facilities on its own territory. It is consistent with international law and beyond reproach for China to do so,” Wang argued.
The American Admiral stated that at most three artificial islands had been built by Chinese forces. “anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems, laser and jamming equipment,”As well “fighter jets,”Wang stated that Washington now represents a threat for its neighbors. “sowing discord and flexing [its] muscles in the South China Sea,” not Beijing.
“I need to point out that the US has been enhancing military deployment around the South China Sea in recent years and has frequently sent warships and military aircraft on a large scale for provocative purposes, which gravely threatens the sovereignty and security of littoral countries and undermines the sound order and navigation safety in these waters,”The Foreign Ministry spokesperson continued.
Although Beijing claims the South China Sea from at least six nations, Beijing asserts that it is sovereign. “historical rights”It covers a large portion of the country. The Associated Press estimates that $5 trillion of commerce passes through the strategic waterway annually.
Washington has rejected China’s “expansive maritime claims”As “inconsistent with international law” – maintaining, however, that it has the right to deploy military assets in what it considers to be international waters in the South China Sea. In addition to a series of ‘freedom of navigation’ missions in the Indo-Pacific, the Biden administration has conducted near-monthly sail-throughs in the Taiwan Strait, sending guided-missile destroyers and other warships through the contested area in moves repeatedly denounced as provocative by Beijing.
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