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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| China completes first stage of work at disputed South China Sea reef, images show |
| 2026-08-19 |
| [Reuters] China has completed the first phase of construction on Antelope Reef in the Paracels archipelago, building a man-made island in the hotly-disputed South China Sea that analysts say will form part of its largest military base. Satellite images reviewed by Reuters show the reclaimed feature in outline for the first time, with barges and dredgers having left after at least six months of work in the busy waterway. Make sense of global markets with the Trading Day newsletter. Sign up here. The completion shows the South China Sea as an increasingly militarised arena of competition between China and the United States and its allies, as both sides jostle for advantages that could prove critical in any future conflict over Taiwan. "The northern part of the South China Sea would be particularly important in a Taiwan conflict scenario, so Antelope is ideally placed," said Ben Lewis, founder of the open-source data platform PLATracker. Construction of buildings work has started in the southeast corner of the island, including a helicopter pad, in the July 19 images taken by Vantor, a commercial provider of satellite images. China's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. China has yet to acknowledge construction of a new military base, while state media have said Antelope will serve civilian needs such as weather forecasting and scientific research. |
| Posted by:Skidmark |