The US Secretary of Defense yesterday expressed concern about the scale and speed of land reclamation activities in the East Sea.

US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. Photo: AP

"The United States and most other countries in the region are deeply concerned about the pace and scale of land reclamation activities in the East Sea," AFP quoted US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter as saying at a defense forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California.

Mr. Carter added that he was very concerned about the risk of militarization in the region as well as the fact that these actions would increase the possibility of miscalculation or conflict between parties involved in sovereignty disputes.

Mr. Carter boarded the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier on November 5, more than a week after the guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen challenged China's sovereignty claims over islands it illegally built in Vietnam's Truong Sa archipelago.

Beijing criticized Washington over the patrol, while China's navy commander warned a minor incident could spark war in the South China Sea if the US did not stop "provocative actions".

The US Navy plans to patrol within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands in the South China Sea about twice a quarter to remind China and other countries of US rights under international law, a defense official said earlier this week.

According to VNE