Satellite images show China is building runway on disputed island claimed by Vietnam

China builds 600-metre-long runway in the contested island of Triton

This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows Triton Island in the South China Sea on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023 (AP)

China appears to be constructing a runway on a disputed island in the South China Sea, which has also been claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan.

According to satellite images, a new airstrip appeared in early August on Triton Island – the southernmost of the Paracel Islands. The contested island is roughly equidistant from the coast of Vietnam and China's island province of Hainan.

So far China has built a 600-metre-long runway, enough to accommodate turboprop aircraft and drones, but not fighter jets or bombers, according to the Associated Press.

Beijing has asserted claims to the entire South China Sea as its own, denying the claims of other Southeast Asian countries and defying an international ruling. In order to assert its sovereignty, China continues to fortify islands in the disputed waters.

The work on Triton Island mirrors construction on seven human-made islands in the Spratly group to the east which have been equipped with airstrips, docks and military systems.

Apart from the airstrip, there is also the presence of large numbers of vehicle tracks running across much of the Triton Island, along with what appear to be containers and construction equipment.

A new building around was built at the same time as the runway around 100 metres to the south of the island and appears to be connected to it by a taxiway.

(L) Satellite image of the Triton Island in February 2023 with no airstrip and the image of the island from August with visible runway and other constructions (Planet Labs PBC / AP)

Beijing had a small harbor and buildings on the island for years, along with a helipad and radar arrays. Two large fields on the island sport a star from the Chinese flag and a hammer and sickle representing the ruling Communist Party.

Hunter Marston, a researcher and analyst at the Australian National University, told The Guardian that Vietnam appeared to perceive the developments on Triton Island with relative ambivalence and did not consider the islands to be “an existential threat to Vietnam’s security”.

Meanwhile, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi met his Vietnamese counterpart Tran Luu Quang on Wednesday in Kunming, Yunnan province.

Following the meeting, Mr Wang said China is willing to work with Vietnam “to oppose interference from external forces and maintain the peace and stability of the South China Sea and the region".

Washington alleges it takes no stance on the sovereignty claims, but regularly sends navy ships on "freedom of navigation operations" near the islands.