HONG KONG China's land reclamation work on a reef in a disputed island chain in the South China Sea is justified and will continue, a retired People's Liberation Army major general said in an interview with state media.

China is likely to withstand international pressure over Fiery Cross Reef, Maj. Gen. Luo Yuan said, according to a report in the Global Times, a state-run newspaper.

In the past three months China reclaimed land around the reef, creating an island large enough to enable its first airstrip in the Spratly Islands, IHS Jane's reported Nov. 20, citing satellite pictures of the area.

Artificial islands could help China anchor its territorial assertions and potentially develop bases near waters that host some of the world's busiest shipping lanes. China claims about 90 percent of the South China Sea, parts of which are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The United States urged China to stop reclaiming land and engage in diplomatic initiatives to encourage all claimants to show restraint, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Jeffrey Pool. In August, China rebuffed efforts by Secretary of State John Kerry to secure a freeze on any actions that might provoke tensions in the waters.

China's construction activities in the islands are to improve working and living conditions of stationed personnel to aid them fulfill their search and rescue obligations, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters Monday in Beijing. "External forces have no right to make irresponsible remarks," she said.

Luo told the Global Times that the U.S. was biased because the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam have set up military facilities in the Spratly islands.

The Philippine government is seeking to validate the report of China building an airstrip and harbor on Fiery Cross Reef, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario told reporters Monday in Manila. President Benigno Aquino and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping have expressed a desire to improve bilateral relations and that can happen while the country seeks to resolve its maritime claims through United Nations arbitration, he said.

Until the reclamation project started, Fiery Cross was underwater, with the only habitable area a concrete platform built and maintained by the PLA Navy, IHS Jane's said.

The new island is more than 3,000 meters long and between 200 and 300 meters wide, IHS Jane's said, citing satellite images taken between Aug. 8 and Nov. 14. Dredgers are constructing a harbor to the east of the reef that appears to be large enough to receive tankers and naval vessels, it said.

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China to continue building on disputed islands, retired PLA general says