Close-up of illegal Chinese military structures built on Chau Vien Reef

Among the seven reefs that China forcibly occupied from Vietnam from 1988-1989, Chau Vien reef is the entity that China has focused on building into the largest artificial island in Truong Sa, since the end of 2013.

Chau Vien Reef is a coral reef belonging to the Truong Sa cluster of the Truong Sa archipelago (Khanh Hoa, Vietnam). Together with Dong Reef, Tay Reef and the coral reef containing Dong Truong Sa island, they form a cluster of reefs that international navigators call London Reefs.

The original rock beach is nearly 6km long along the east-west axis, with an area of ​​8 square kilometers. Except for a few rocks rising in the north at a height of 1.2-1.5m above sea level, most of Chau Vien rock is submerged under water.

Since late 2013, China has sent dozens of large shipping vessels and machinery and equipment to dredge, reclaim, and expand the reef many times larger.

At the end of 2014, China continued to send engineers and workers to build infrastructure systems, airports, ports, and especially works to ensure the operation of high-frequency radar systems, air traffic control, communications, etc.

At the end of May 2015, the Chinese Ministry of Transport started construction and on October 9, 2015, put into use two lighthouses named Huayang and Chigua on Chau Vien Reef. Huayang lighthouse is cylindrical, 50 m high. Chigua lighthouse is cylindrical with reinforced concrete structure, glowing within a range of 22 nautical miles and a flashing cycle of 8 seconds.

Most recently, on May 3, 2016, the Kunlun 998 landing ship of the Chinese Navy brought a Navy Art Troupe of hundreds of people to perform for Chinese soldiers and construction workers on duty on Chau Vien Reef.

Currently, the expansion and construction of new structures are still in progress, and in the future, the area at Chau Vien Reef may become even larger. Because it is a large island with many special structures, China has gathered many types of warships, coast guard ships, and iron fishing boats to protect and guard against ships from other countries approaching. If they exceed the 20 km protection zone, Chinese ships will rush out to ram and block them.

During a working trip to Truong Sa in late May and early June 2016, Thanh Nien Newspaper reporters recorded many images of the constructions that China illegally built on Chau Vien Reef.

Some Vietnamese fishermen fishing at Da Dong A Island (the closest Vietnamese island to Chau Vien) said that if they went any closer, the Chinese side would send out speedboats to push them away and soldiers on the boats would point guns at them and threaten them...

According to TNO