China completes first stage at disputed reef

China has completed the first phase of construction on Antelope Reef (Lingyang Reef, 羚羊礁) in the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島), building an artificial island in the disputed South China Sea that analysts say will form part of its largest military base.Satellite images showed the reclaimed feature — which Taiwan also claims — in outline for the first time, with barges and dredgers having left after at least six months of work in the busy waterway.The completion shows the South China Sea as an increasingly militarized arena of competition between China and the US and its allies. China has occupied all the Paracel Islands since 1974, when it forced South Vietnamese forces off the islands. Photo: AFP “The northern part of the South China Sea would be particularly important in a Taiwan