Philippines to protest China’s flight check over Spratlys

China said its test flight on Yongshu reef is “within sovereignty” after Vietnam accused China of violating its sovereignty by landing a plane on an airstrip Beijing built in the South China Sea.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Hai Binh said the airfield had been “built illegally” on Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly archipelago in territory that was “part of Vietnam’s Spratlys”, reports the Dawn. And on Sunday, it asked Beijing for an urgent investigation of the ramming and sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat off Vietnam’s coast by a foreign vessel that may have been Chinese. China repeatedly claims that its artificial islands are for civilian use but USA officials said Beijing could eventually deploy radar and missile systems, and even establish an air defense identification zone.

China, which is defiant against all criticism and continues to claim nearly the entire South China Sea as its backyard, has been causing alarm among its neighbours as it builds up infrastructure on reefs in the disputed waters. It isn’t immediately clear from either the Vietnamese or Chinese foreign ministry statements if the civilian aircraft that landed on Fiery Cross Reef on Saturday was comparable in size to a large military aircraft, such as a long-range bomber.

This US Navy photo obtained November 7, 2015 shows Two MV-22 Ospreys, assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 265, as they land on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) on November 5, 2015 in the South China Sea.

Manila was considering protesting China’s action, the spokesman said. The accusations have provided the pretext for forging stronger military ties with countries such as the Philippines and Vietnam, which, far from “seeking to reduce tensions”, have been encouraged to more aggressively challenge Chinese territorial claims.

Jose added that Beijing’s latest actions raise tensions in the disputed West Philippine Sea or South China Sea.

Criticism by other claimants has recently been mounting against “aggressive” Chinese efforts in the sea waters, including the Spratlys – also claimed by Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.

The United States said it was concerned China’s flight has heightened tensions.

Relations between the communist neighbours have grown tense in recent years over the disputed Spratly and Paracel island chains.

According to associate professor at the U.S. Naval War College, Andrew Erickson, China already has two completed airfields in the South China Sea.