China to Build Lighthouses on 5 Isles in Defiance of US Call

BEIJING— China plans to build lighthouses on five islands in the South China Sea, state media reported on Thursday, in defiance of calls from the United States and the Philippines for a freeze on such activity to ease tension over rival claims.

At least two of the islands upon which China said it will put up lighthouses appear to be in waters also claimed by Vietnam.

Overlapping claims in the South China Sea have fueled confrontation in recent months with China, which claims 90 percent of the sea and is at odds with Vietnam and the Philippines in particular.

The state-run China News Service said Chinese authorities had been surveying sites for lighthouses on five islands, known in English as North Reef, Antelope Reef, Drummond Island, South Sand and Pyramid Rock.

The survey began on July 27, and “as of Aug. 4 construction sites and alternative locations for lighthouses on the five islands and reefs had been initially decided upon,” the news service said, quoting a Chinese navigation official.

Drummond Island and Pyramid Rock are in the China-controlled Paracel Islands - more than 100 small coral islands and reefs also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan.

It was not clear whether the other three islets where lighthouses will be built are also in disputed waters...............................http://www.voanews.com/content/reu-china-build-lighthouses-on-5-isles-in-defiance-of-us-call/2405627.html
7/8/14
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• Chinese FM confirms drilling off Xisha completed. (The spokesman also noted the Xisha Islands are inherent territory of China)

• Philippines, US to Hold Naval Drills Near Disputed Shoal

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