BEIJING THREATENS AIR ZONE OVER SOUTH CHINA SEA

BEIJING China warned other countries Wednesday against threatening its security in the South China Sea after an international tribunal handed the Philippines a victory by saying Beijing had no legal basis for its expansive claims there.

Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said Beijing could declare an air defence identification zone over the waters if it felt threatened.

Liu said the islands in the South China Sea were China’s “inherent territory.”