Alarming satellite images appear to show China building a new airstrip in the disputed waters in the South China Sea,
CNN reports.
If accurate, the images — analyzed by The Center for Strategic and International Studies [CSIS], a Washington-based think tank — confirm China is building a third airstrip in the area after pledging to stop reclaiming land there.
"If it does turn out to be a runway, China will have three airstrips that can carry any plane the PLA (People's Liberation Army) has to offer," Greg Poling, director of CSIS's Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, told CNN.
"All of these places have gone from being outposts on stilts to full islands, potentially with airstrips, within the space of a year or just over a year."
Numerous countries have claimed stakes in the South China Sea, including its island chains. They include China, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
The South China Sea is the subject of numerous rival — often messy — territorial claims, with China, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam disputing sovereignty of several island chains and nearby waters.
News of the third air strip is bound to come up when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits Washington next week.
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