China to offer cruises to disputed archipelago in South China Sea

China will offer its first regular civilian cruises to the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea by 2020, state media said on Wednesday, a move likely to irk other claimants to the disputed waters.

China's activities in the contested area, such as building artificial islands, airfields and other military facilities, have fuelled tension in Southeast Asia, although it says most of the construction is for civilian purposes.

The island province of Hainan will operate regular trips to the Spratlys, which China calls the Nansha Islands, in response to increasing demand, the official China Daily newspaper said, citing provincial authorities.

"The province plans a pan-South China Sea cruise line and cruise trips business covering countries along the Maritime Silk Road," it added, referring to President Xi Jinping's initiative to boost investment and trade links.

The trips will begin before 2020, the paper said.

The plans are also likely to irritate the United States and its regional allies, which have voiced concern over China's assertiveness in the busy waterway, where rival claimants have encouraged a civilian presence on disputed islands.

China claims 90 per cent of the potentially energy-rich South China Sea. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan lay claim to parts of the sea, through which ships carrying about $5 trillion US of trade pass every year.

Since 2013, China has run cruises to the Paracels, known as the Xisha Islands in Chinese. China has controlled the Paracels, which are nearer its coast than the Spratlys, since the 1970s.

State-owned China COSCO Shipping Corp plans to launch cruise trips to the Paracels from next month.

Maldives-style resorts

Analysts say China's development plans in the more distant Spratlys would give Beijing its first permanent presence deep in the maritime heart of Southeast Asia.

Beijing has said it wants to build Maldives-style resorts around the South China Sea.

It is unclear if foreigners would be allowed to visit. Only Chinese nationals have so far been permitted to take the tours.

The United States called on China and other rival claimants Wednesday to exercise restraint when an international tribunal issues a landmark ruling on the South China Sea disputes that Beijing has chosen to ignore.

A senior U.S. State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to Asian journalists through a teleconference, said the upcoming decision by the arbitration panel in The Hague may offer "a great deal of clarity" on the disputes and help the claimants forge an arrangement to avoid potential confrontations.

China won't play

She said the decision, expected within weeks, could also serve as a jumping off point to diplomatic talks.

"We would certainly call on all governments to exercise restraint and to use this post-arbitration period as an opportunity to restart those diplomatic discussions," she said.

China has said it would not recognize any arbitration decision despite calls by several Asian and Western governments for it to respect international law. Some fear Beijing may take a harder stance and take provocative actions if it comes under pressure from outside, including by the United States, to comply with an adversarial ruling.

In a harsh attack on U.S. policies in Asia, the flagship newspaper of China's ruling Communist Party on Wednesday accused Washington of seeking to turn the South China Sea "into a powder keg" and warned it not to underestimate China's determination to defend its territorial claims.