A Chinese patrol team has reached reefs and islands in the center of the Nansha Islands in order to conduct closer observations during a patrol mission in the South China Sea.
The team, consisting of four China Marine Surveillance ships, reached the area on Tuesday morning when radar suggested the presence of a foreign fishing vessel nearby.
According to the team, Chinese patrol staff immediately broadcast a statement in Chinese, English and Vietnamese to proclaim sovereignty of the Xisha Islands and Nansha Islands.
On Monday, the team conducted a formation practice near Yongshu Reef in the South China Sea. The two-hour practice session was fulfilled smoothly but a helicopter scheduled to take part did not do so, due to adverse weather.
The ships reached Huayang Reef, a coral reef in the Nansha Islands, on Sunday and anchored northeast of Yongshu Reef on Sunday evening.
Since taking off from south China's coastal city of Sanya on June 26, the team has sailed more than 2,000 nautical miles.
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