View from heaven: how the Chinese are building islands in the disputed territory

These islands are a paradise for tourists. White sand on the beaches, which playfully run into turquoise waves. Light sea breeze. But this paradise is artificial, it is artificial, and not ghostly, and instead of tourists it is inhabited by the military. Paradise islands have begun to appear in the South China Sea in recent months. They have become Beijing's trump cards in the increasingly escalating conflict between China and other Asian countries for sovereignty over the region's maritime expanses.

Well, let's see what happens, but for now let's see what has already happened. Satellite images will help us with this.

(Total 8 photos)

Source: agonistica.com

1. China is washing up giant sand masses on reefs and shallows, artificially increasing the number of islands in the Spratly archipelago. China's Asian rivals view this activity as an attempt to lay hands on the entire South China Sea.

2. New islands are able to support large buildings, human settlements and intelligence systems, including radars. Therefore, the Chinese "island building" worries Vietnam, the Philippines and other countries of Southeast Asia, which also lay claim to the Spratly.

3. Since April, the Philippines has been bombarding China with protests, accusing it of turning two reefs into islands. China's game of God, who created the land and the seas, unnerves Washington as well. The US fears that artificial islands will help China install more advanced tracking systems and become places to re-equip Chinese fleets. In the future, "island building" will serve China's further advance in the western part of the Pacific Ocean.

4. In addition to military purposes, the creation of artificial islands will allow the PRC to make exclusive claims to economic zones within 200 nautical miles of each island it builds, as provided for by the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea. Thus, China, creating artificial islands, also grabs 200 nautical miles around them.

5. China, responding to criticism against him, says that he is building islands in the Spratly archipelago on a legal basis, since this archipelago is its territory. Last month, the Chinese Foreign Ministry again proclaimed that "China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands." (Nansha is the Chinese name for the Spratly.)

6. China, with the help of sand and concrete, has created more than 1.5 square meters at this stage. km of land in the Spratly region. In fact, over the past month, Beijing has erected a huge wall of sand in the area of the disputed islands.

7. The creation of artificial islands is a convenient way to attach neighboring islands to them, as well as to declare your rights to the nearby water area: according to geological exploration, colossal reserves of energy resources are concentrated in the South China Sea.

8. Starting in January of this year, China is building four more islands ranging in size from 20 to 40 acres. They will most likely have a military purpose, judging by the structures being created on them. But the islands will not only be military bases or oil rigs. They will become forever Chinese territory!