China has rejected US criticism concerning construction work, which is taking place on a series of disputed islands in South China Sea.

China has rejected US criticism concerning construction work, which is taking place on a series of disputed islands in South China Sea.

Beijing said its presence is a peaceful one and is merely “improving the functions of the relevant islands and reefs.”

"The situation in the South China Sea is on the whole peaceful and stable, and there has never been an issue with the freedom of navigation," said Admiral Sun Jianguo, the deputy chief of the general staff department in the People's Liberation Army, during a summit in Singapore on Sunday.

He added that Chinese authorities have carried out construction on some of the islands in the South China Sea “mainly for the purpose of improving the functions of the relevant islands and reefs, and the working and living conditions of personnel stationed there.”

The area is a busy shipping route connecting to the Strait of Malacca and the Pacific and is believed to have rich oil and gas deposits, meaning that the tiny specks of land that dot it have been contested by many neighboring powers for decades.