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              China Establishes Missile System on Contested Island

   China has deployed an advanced surface-to-air missile system to one of
   the disputed islands it has claimed in the South China Sea, a move that
   is likely to increase tensions among China and its neighbors.

   Taiwan's Defense Ministry said Wednesday that the missile batteries
   have been set up on Woody Island, which is part of the Paracel island
   chain.  Images from a civilian satellite company, first revealed by
   U.S.-based Fox News, shows two batteries of eight surface-to-air
   missile launchers as well as a radar system deployed on the beach on
   Sunday.

   Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Wednesday that the reports of the
   missile deployment are the creations of some Western media.

   News of the deployment of the missile system came as President Barack
   Obama hosted the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
   (ASEAN) in California, where he called for called for "tangible steps"
   to lower tensions over ongoing territorial disputes in the South China
   Sea.

   He also called for a halt to further land reclamation, a reference to
   Beijing's massive effort to assert its claims over disputed territory
   through new construction and island-building, ignoring competing claims
   by Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

   ''A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical Triton Island in the
   Paracel group last month, which is claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam as
   well as by China. U.S. defense officials said the mission was conducted
   under "freedom of navigation," which gives every nation the right to
   sail through crucial international navigation lanes.  The U.S. has said
   it will continue its "freedom of navigation" missions in the area,
   including flying aircraft overhead.

   Beijing denounced the U.S. action as a provocation, and vowed there
   would be consequences.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/china-established-missile-system-on-c
   ontested-island/3194362.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/china-established-missile-system-on-contested-island/3194362.html