Yang Yujun, a spokesman for the Chinese defense ministry, has said the Defense Department‘s annual report about China’s military programs gives a “distorted” view of Chinese defense policies and an “unfair” depiction of the country’s maritime activities, Reuters reported Sunday.
Benjamin Kang Lim writes DoD said in a report to Congress Friday that the department found China’s reclamation efforts in the South China Sea encompass approximately 3,200 acres of land over the past two years, including 3,000-meter airstrips around the disputed Spratlys Islands.
The report said Yang told China’s Xinhua news agency said those construction projects aim to serve civilian purposes while Chinese military reform initiatives seek to help maintain the country’s sovereignty and security.
Yang added he believes U.S. has initiated “militarization in the South China Sea” through deployment of military aircraft and warships around the region, Agence France-Presse reported Sunday.
