U.S. Navy alarmed at Beijing’s ‘Great Wall of Sand’ in South China Sea

In this Feb. 25, 2014 file photo taken by surveillance planes and released by the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, a Chinese vessel, top center, is used to expand structures and land on the Johnson Reef, called Mabini by the Philippines and Chigua by China, at the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, Philippines. (AP)

By Simon Denyer April 1 at 4:50 AM

BEIJING — China is building “a great wall of sand” through an unprecedented program of land reclamation in the South China Sea, raising concerns about the possibility of military confrontation in the disputed waters, according to the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

U.S. Navy Alarmed at Beijing’s ‘Great Wall of Sand’ in South China Sea by Thavam Ratna