China rejects US charge of raising South China Sea tensions

China's military deployments in the South China Sea are no different from US deployments on Hawaii, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday, rejecting a US accusation of raising tensions in the area ahead of a visit by Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Washington this week.

"China deploying necessary, limited defensive facilities on its own territory is not substantively different from the United States defending Hawaii," Hua said.

The US last week accused China of "militarizing" the South China Sea by deploying surface-to-air missiles on Yongxing island.

Asked whether the South China Sea, as well as the missile deployment, will be raised during Wang's meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry, Hua said Washington should "stop using the issue to make a fuss".

It is the US frequently sending military planes and vessels to the South China Sea to conduct close-up military surveillance against China that heightened tensions in the area, Hua said, and that is the biggest cause of the militarization of the South China Sea.