U.S. Calls China’s South China Sea Building Efforts ‘Troubling’

The U.S. finds China’s efforts to build military facilities on reclaimed South China Sea islands “troubling” and plans to raise the issue during annual talks in Washington this month, a top State Department official said.

Daniel Russel, assistant U.S. secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, was responding to a Chinese statement Tuesday, saying the country would complete island-building efforts “in the upcoming days.” Construction of military and civilian facilities on the new and expanded islands would continue, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.