Li: No military ambitions

Australias Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull watches with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang as Chinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Barnaby Joyce, Australias Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, shake hands during an official signing ceremony at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, March 24, 2017. REUTERS/David Gray

Sydney: China is not militarising the disputed South China Sea, the country’s premier said in Australia, claiming defence equipment Beijing has installed on the artificial islands there is “primarily” for civilian use.

The sea is a source of growing regional tension, with Beijing insisting it has sovereignty over virtually all the resource-rich waters, which are also claimed in part by several other countries, and deemed international waters by most of the world.