China conducts combat training over disputed islands

By Mahmut Atanur

BEIJING (AA) – China’s air force revealed Saturday that several aircraft had inspected airspace over disputed islands in the South China Sea as part of combat training.

State news agency Xinhua cited spokesman Sen. Col. Shen Jinke as saying that the flights -- the date of which was not given -- were part of combat training to improve the air force's response to security threats.

They saw H-6 bombers and Su-30 fighter jets survey the area around the Nansha and Huangyan islands -- also known as the Spratlys and the Scarborough Shoal.

The Scarborough Shoal -- like other parts of the Spratly island chain -- is contested by other countries, including the Philippines.

On July 12, the Permanent Court of Arbitration based in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines in its petition against China’s “nine-dash line” claim on a large part of the South China Sea.

It said China had no basis to claim historic rights in the area, and that it had violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights by constructing artificial islands and interfering with Philippine fishing.

China, meanwhile, has accused the Philippines of having “deliberately mischaracterized” disputes in the sea, declaring the court's award "null and void", saying it had no binding force.

China claims around 90 percent of the sea -- which is believed to be sitting atop huge oil and gas deposits -- but Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also consider some of the region’s waters, islands and reefs to be their territory.

China and the United States have been accusing one another of leading to militarization of the sea, a critical asset for global shipping and fishing that sees more than $5 trillion in maritime trade every year.