The White House issued a stern warning to Beijing on Thursday over reports that its military installed new missile systems — some anti-ship, others surface-to-air — on island outposts in the South China Sea.
The deployment is said to be the first of its kind and ultimately shows how the Chinese have been boosting their military presence in the highly-contested region over the last few weeks.
“We’re well aware of China’s militarization of the South China Sea,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters Thursday during a press briefing.
“We’ve raised concerns directly with the Chinese about this and there will be near-term and long-term consequences,” she said.
The new weapons systems were reportedly installed at three outposts across the Spratly Islands.
Sources told CNBC that they were outfitted with land-based, anti-ship cruise missiles, as well as surface-to-air missiles.
The region has been engulfed in territorial disputes for years — with China, the Philippines and Vietnam all vying for land, along with several other countries.
The Chinese currently lay claim to the Pratas, Paracels and Spratly islands, as well as the Macclesfield Bank area. They have approximately 27 military outposts.
Chinese president Xi Jinping had vowed in 2015 to not militarize the Spratlys, but he reportedly broke his promise a little over a year later and still continues to approve military installations on the artificial islands today.
The weapons systems that were most recently deployed were set up at the Fiery Cross Reef, Subi Reef and Mischief Reef outposts. Sources told CNBC that they were deployed within the past 30 days — marking the first time that missiles had ever been installed in the Spratlys.
China’s foreign ministry said Thursday that the move was done for national security reasons.
“Those who do not intend to be aggressive have no need to be worried or scared,” said ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.
Military experts called the missile deployments a “major escalation” in one of the most disputed territories in the world.
“When China sees that it can get away with these types of actions with little cost — as they did all through 2015 and 2016 — it only makes it more likely they will keep pressing,” explained Eric Sayers, former consultant to the commander of the U.S. Pacific Command.
While the White House wouldn’t say what the “consequences” would be over the military installments, Sayers told Reuters that the US could rescind Beijing’s invitation to this year’s RIMPAC multilateral naval exercises in Hawaii, which take place in July.
“China sees its participation in the exercise as a sign of its acceptance among the world’s maritime powers,” he said. “But Beijing should not be allowed to militarize this open maritime domain and still be honored as a welcomed member of the maritime community.”
With Post wires