The United States has urged China and other claimants not to militarize their holdings in the South China Sea. / ReutersWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Recent satellite photographs show China appears to have built reinforced aircraft hangars on its holdings in the disputed South China Sea, according to a Washington-based think tank. Romeo Ranoco / ReutersChina claims most of the South China Sea, through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. China has sent bombers and fighter jets on combat patrols near the contested South China Sea islands, state media reported on Saturday, and Japan has complained about what it has said were multiple intrusions into its territorial waters around another group of islands in the East China Sea. But the rapid construction of reinforced hangars at all three features indicates that this is likely to change,” CSIS said in a report.

Source: Huffington Post August 09, 2016 06:56 UTC