New Photo Shows China's First Airfield in the World's Most Contested Archipelago

Apr 17, 2015 | Ishaan Tharoor
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The image, provided by IHS Jane's Defense Weekly, shows that China has begun building a runway on an island in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. According to Jane's, satellite photos dated from March 23 show "a paved section of runway" on the northeastern side of Fiery Cross Reef, a formation in the archipelago that China began converting into an island last year.

Earlier this month, my colleague Simon Denyer wrote about the "Great Wall of sand" that China is erecting in the middle of the strategic body of water, which is contested by a host of Asian countries but claimed virtually in its entirety by Beijing.

Much to the ire of U.S. officials and neighboring governments, China has steadily expanded its footprint in the South China Sea's Paracel and Spratly Islands -- spits of uninhabited coral and rock that spark frequent flare-ups and confrontations between Chinese vessels and those of Vietnam, the Philippines and other countries.