MANILA, Philippines --- A Chinese military transport plane has been spotted on Kagitingan (Fiery Cross) Reef, a Philippine-claimed territory but now being occupied by China in the West Philippine Sea.
Analysts said the sighting of the Chinese military aircraft in the area was a sign of unceasing Chinese military operations in the South China Sea despite global anxiety over the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which started in China.
Satellite image posted by ImageSat International (ISI), a commercial provider of high-resolution satellite images, showed a Chinese Y-8 transport aircraft on March 28 on Kagitingan Reef.
https://twitter.com/ImageSatIntl/status/1244234832584028162
"Routine operation of transport aircraft in the South China Sea area could indicate that the Chinese military is hardly affected by the country's health crisis," ISI said on Twitter on Sunday (March 29).
Beijing's activities in the South China Sea, both civilian and military, continue in the island while the rest of the world is grappling with COVID-19.
The Chinese government recently launched two research stations on Kagitingan and Zamora (Subi) reefs, two of China's three large man-made military bases in the West Philippine Sea.
By INQUIRER.net
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