HispanicBusiness

China raised the national flag Tuesday over the newly established city of Sansha on Yongxing Island.

China's official Xinhua news agency said the national anthem played as the flag was raised in front of the city government's main building in the country's Hainan province. Sansha was created to administer the disputed Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Islands and surrounding waters in the South China Sea.

Xinhua said China's Central Military Commission has approved the deployment of a garrison of soldiers to guard the disputed islands.

Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Islands are Chinese names for the natural resource-rich Spratlys, the Paracels and the Macclesfield Bank islands group in the South China Sea, seen as vital for international trade and shipping, The New York Times said.

The islands are also claimed by neighboring countries, including Vietnam and the Philippines.

The Philippine government has filed a diplomatic protest against China's steps to strengthen its claims on the islands.