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Why China is carrying out construction at Lingyang Jiao: Experts cite sovereignty, livelihoods and public services_我的网站

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    Aerial view of Lingyang Jiao Photo: XinhuaSome foreign media have recently renewed hypes over China's construction at Lingyang Jiao in the Xisha Qundao (Xisha Islands), claiming that the completed first phase could become part of China's "largest military base" in the region.
China has firmly rejected such hypes. "Xisha Qundao is China's inherent territory, over which there is no dispute. Necessary construction on our own territory is aimed at improving living and working conditions on the islands and growing the local economy," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian at a regular press conference on March 23.
Despite that clear explanation, some foreign media outlets continued to point their finger at the Chinese reef. Why is China carrying out construction at Lingyang Jiao, and why do external parties have no grounds to reproach? Chinese experts recently spoke with the Global Times about the history, purpose and legal basis of the construction on the reef.
Indisputable sovereignty
Lingyang Jiao, whose name comes from its resemblance to an antelope horn, lies on the western side of Yongle Atoll in the Xisha Qundao, about 89 kilometers from Yongxing Island and 6.5 kilometers from Jinyin Island. The reef stretches six kilometers from north to south, measures about 3.5 kilometers at its widest point and covers roughly 15 square kilometers.
The reef, also traditionally known among Chinese fishermen as Kuangzai or Quanzai, is administered by the city of Sansha in South China's Hainan Province.
"Lingyang Jiao is an inherent part of China's territory. Fishermen from Hainan sailed there to fish as early as the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties," Xu Xiaodong, a vice chairman of the Huayang Center for Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance, told the Global Times on March 23.
In 1935, the then-Chinese government included the reef in its bilingual list of South China Sea island names. Its name was reviewed again in a corresponding list issued by the then ministry of the interior in 1947 and has remained in use ever since, Xu said.
During the 1974 Xisha self-defense counterattack, the South Vietnamese warship Nhat Tao was sunk in waters near Lingyang Jiao. Xu said these facts demonstrate the Chinese government's determination and actions to safeguard its sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao, including Lingyang Jiao.
Lei Xiaolu, a professor at Wuhan University China Institute of Boundary and Ocean Studies, said that China was the first country to discover, develop and administer the Xisha Qundao. Successive Chinese governments have continuously exercised jurisdiction over the islands, including Lingyang Jiao, forming a clear historical record.
France recognized China's sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lei said. When France attempted to occupy the Xisha Qundao in 1931 and nine islands and reefs in the Nansha Qundao in 1933, the Chinese government immediately protested and reaffirmed its sovereignty.
Numerous official documents from that period clearly placed the Dongsha, Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Qundao within Chinese territory, such as a 1935 map of the South China Sea islands, a brief chorography of the South China Sea islands in 1947, a comparison table of their old and new names, and a location map bearing the South China Sea dash line. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese government continued to exercise sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao. 
"Lingyang Jiao is part of China's Xisha Qundao. The Chinese government has repeatedly made clear that China has indisputable sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao," Lei said.
Construction to improve living
Previously published aerial images have shown Lingyang Jiao's distinctive ring-shaped lagoon, but its natural beauty long contrasted with the rudimentary living conditions faced by local fishermen.
According to the official website of the Sansha city government, the reef was once almost entirely barren, with little vegetation. Fishermen lived two or three to a coral-stone hut measuring only three or four square meters.
For a long period, a single diesel generator was used to supply electricity on the reef, providing power only between 7 pm and 11 pm. Fresh water had to be carried from vessels arriving from Hainan Island, while typhoons posed a constant threat to residents and their homes.
Construction of a fishermen's settlement was put on the agenda in 2012. However, the complex topography and hydrological conditions around the reef prevented large vessels from approaching, forcing workers to carry construction materials ashore by hand. 
After years of development, Lingyang Jiao now has basic infrastructure including a desalination facility and a power station. Its navigation channel has been dredged and opened, and a fishermen's settlement has been completed. 
Xu said the current construction serves at least two purposes: The first is to provide more and better public services.
Lingyang Jiao lies on the outer edge of the Yongle Islands, surrounded by some of the most difficult navigational waters in the Xisha Qundao. In 2015, the Chinese government built and activated a lighthouse there to provide navigation services for passing vessels.
"Further construction can provide stronger infrastructure support for maritime search and rescue, disaster prevention and mitigation, and help ensure navigational safety in the South China Sea," Xu said.
The construction will also further improve local residents' living conditions. Transport difficulties have long left the reef short of essential supplies, while typhoons have repeatedly caused serious damage to housing. The construction can better meet fishermen's needs for water, electricity, secure housing and employment, Xu noted.
"Fishermen working in the South China Sea have long faced extremely harsh conditions. Far from shore, they spent weeks exposed to intense sunlight, strong winds, heavy rain and sudden typhoons, often without a safe place to rest or repair their boats," Ding Duo, director of the Research Center for International and Regional Issues at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
Ding said the construction is intended to improve the living standards of Chinese fishermen and represents a direct result of China's people-centered development philosophy. 
"China now has the capacity and resources to develop infrastructure at Lingyang Jiao. Doing so is both feasible and responsible, and responds to the long-standing needs of fishermen who have depended on these waters for their livelihoods for centuries," Ding said. 
Besides, ecological protection has remained a prerequisite for production and construction on the reef. In 2019, a research team led by Professor Xie Qiang from Sun Yat-sen University School of Life Sciences discovered a new marine insect species at Lingyang Jiao and named it after the reef.
It was China's first discovery of a strictly marine insect group at the family level within its territory and territorial waters, filling a gap in the country's scientific records. 
"China's land reclamation and construction activities are conducted in strict accordance with laws, regulations and ecological standards," Xu said. "Through technological innovation and systematic governance, China has balanced ecological protection with resource utilization. The results of environmental protection at Lingyang Jiao and in its surrounding waters are clearly visible," Xu said.
No room for external interference
China's construction at Lingyang Jiao has drawn persistent attention from some foreign media. Since January, outlets including Newsweek have used satellite images to hype the project.
The US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies recently claimed that the reclaimed area at Lingyang Jiao had surpassed that of Yongxing Island and was approaching the size of Meiji Jiao, China's largest island reef in the South China Sea.
A Reuters report published on Wednesday went further, claiming that Lingyang Jiao could be one of the Chinese military's most important features in the South China Sea. It speculated that the reef could host surveillance facilities or support nuclear-powered submarines to strengthen "China's military presence around key waterways." 
Ding rejected this accusation, saying that as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China conducts construction on islands and reefs in the South China Sea strictly within the framework of international law.
"The construction at Lingyang Jiao is peaceful in nature and serves the public. It is intended to better safeguard national territory while providing practical assistance to people and vessels operating in the South China Sea," Ding said.
Ding said improved infrastructure at Lingyang Jiao would bring broader benefits to the region by strengthening China's capacity to provide public services. These include more accurate weather forecasting, faster and more efficient emergency rescue, broader marine scientific research and stronger safety support for the South China Sea's busy international shipping routes.
"China's construction can provide more international public goods and help reduce risks for merchant ships, fishing vessels and other maritime activities," Ding said. "It is not militarization, but an effort aimed at safeguarding peace and stability. The tendency to view everything China does as military in purpose reflects the dark geopolitical mentality of the West."
Xu said China's land reclamation and construction activities also have a solid basis in international law. China ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1996 and, under the convention, has the right to conduct construction on islands and reefs within its own territorial waters without seeking the consent or approval of any other country.
"The Xisha Qundao have been Chinese territory since ancient times. Lingyang Jiao has long been a place where Chinese fishermen live and work, and it also carries the history of the Maritime Silk Road," Xu said.
Both history and present-day reality demonstrate China's indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea islands, including the Xisha Qundao, Xu noted. The waters surrounding the Xisha Qundao are under China's effective administration, making land reclamation and construction at Lingyang Jiao normal activities within China's sovereign jurisdiction.
Objections from external parties are inconsistent with China's long-standing administration of the South China Sea islands and have no basis in international law or international rules, Xu said. No country has the right to interfere in China's construction activities at Lingyang Jiao.
。    　　呼和浩特8月24日电 题：特写：“赛考斯林”迎来“赛考斯”  记者勿日汗、王春燕、安路蒙  24日下午，斜阳漫洒，内蒙古乌审旗毛乌素沙地深处，“赛考斯林”静立在光影里，等候“赛考斯”（本名罗纳德·萨科尔斯基）的到来。  杨树、松树、柏树层层叠叠铺展开去，最高的已有20米。

二 | 林间立着一座崭新的花岗岩石碑，上面刻着“治沙英雄 植树楷模”，落款为“美国赛·考斯基先生为全国劳模殷玉珍敬题”。  车子沿林间土路颠簸而来，殷玉珍和“赛考斯”走下车。前一天下午，这位美国老人抵达内蒙古鄂尔多斯市，与阔别26年的殷玉珍重逢。而此刻，他已来到乌审旗无定河镇萨拉乌苏村殷玉珍的家，站在这片以自己名字命名的林地里。  1999年，在河南洛阳市任教的美国教师“赛考斯”，在电视上看到殷玉珍在风沙中种树的故事，画面让他深受感动。他奔走两月筹得5000美元，捐给这位素未谋面的中国农村妇女。

三 | 殷玉珍用那笔钱买了5万多棵树苗，一棵棵背进沙窝，一株株栽进黄沙。  当年“赛考斯”从未求任何回报，甚至不敢相信这些树苗能活下去。但殷玉珍不一样，她在这片林子里竖起一块砖碑，上面写着“美国：赛·考斯基”，称这片林子为“赛考斯林”。她要铭记这份情，暗下决心，一定要把树种活，让“赛考斯”过来看看。  这一天，终于到来。  殷玉珍带着“赛考斯”走到碑前，当年的旧砖碑已变成花岗岩石碑。“赛考斯”拿起一支绿色染料笔，弯下腰，在碑身一角写下一个“S”，旁边画了一棵小树，树下连着一颗心，而后郑重地写下“YIN”。他直起身，退后半步，端详片刻。  阳光落在绿色字迹上，“S”与“YIN”之间，一颗心托着一棵树，立在花岗岩上，也立在了毛乌素沙地的风里。

四 |   “赛考斯”走进林子，脚下是厚厚的落叶。殷玉珍带他直奔一棵杨树，树干粗壮，10多米高。“赛考斯”不敢相信，这是他26年前来毛乌素沙地探望殷玉珍时，一起种下的那棵树。当时，这棵杨树苗只有1米多高，手指粗细，在风里摇摇晃晃，像随时会被沙埋掉。  在“赛考斯”来前夕，殷玉珍时不时去看看这棵树，用手抚摸，抬头仰望伞盖一般的枝条。她惊喜地发现，一场大雨过后，树皮上的菌斑形状竟像极了花朵。

五 | 她兴奋地说：“‘赛考斯’要来了，树都开花了。”  今天，他们要在“赛考斯林”一起种下新的树苗。

六 | 这棵樟子松苗来自殷玉珍自己的育苗基地。这位全国劳动模范、毛乌素沙地治沙人，用40多年时间让7万亩荒沙变成绿洲。

七 |   “再种一棵。”铁锹递到“赛考斯”手里。  两人弯腰，扶苗，培土。“赛考斯”的手有些抖，但下铲的姿势还算稳。殷玉珍在他对面站着，稳稳扶住树苗。身后的整片“赛考斯林”早已绿树成荫。  时隔26年，“赛考斯林”的树种在更迭，殷玉珍与“赛考斯”的友谊也在续写。  “我在内蒙古种下了一棵友谊树。”“赛考斯”说。  “赛考斯林”，终于迎来了“赛考斯”。

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Published on:21:54:49