Photo of certain construction site at South China Sea.
China has been rapidly piling sand onto reefs
in the South China Sea, creating seven new islets in the region. It is
straining geopolitical tensions that were already taut.
The speed and scale of China’s island-building spree have alarmed other countries with interests in the region. China announced
in June that the creation of islands — moving sediment from the
seafloor to a reef — would soon be completed. Since then, China has
focused its efforts on construction. So far it has constructed port
facilities, military buildings and an airstrip on the islands, with
recent imagery showing evidence of two more airstrips under
construction. The installations bolster China’s foothold in the Spratly
Islands, a disputed scattering of reefs and islands in the South China
Sea more than 500 miles from the Chinese mainland. China’s
activity in the Spratlys is a major point of contention between China
and the United States and was a primary topic of discussion between
President Obama and President Xi Jinping of China during the Chinese
president’s visit to the White House in September. On Monday, the United
States sent a Navy destroyer near the islands, entering the disputed waters.
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