Beijing vows its new aircraft carrier will be based in the disputed South China Sea in warning to the US and its regional neighbours

China reportedly plans to place its new carrier in disputed waters

It comes days after White House pledged to challenge Chinese occupation
It could cause a flashpoint among China's rivals in the area
Reports say the move will help military respond to 'complicated situations'

Tensions between the Trump administration and China could be set to heighten amid reports that Beijing plans to place a new aircraft carrier in disputed waters.

Reports in the Chinese media state that the carrier, provisionally named the Shandong, is set to sited closed to the South China Sea.

It comes after the White House pledged to challenge Chinese occupation in the important transport route.

Work is in progress on the new aircraft carrier, which officials reportedly plan to place in the South China Sea

The Shandong will be China's first homemade aircraft carrier. The first, The Liaoning (pictured) is a refurbished Soviet vessel

The South China Morning Post reports that officials believe placing China's first ever homemade carrier in the area will help the military respond to 'complicated situations'.

China's existing carrier, The Liaoning, is a refurbished Soviet vessel based in the northern port of Qingdao.

Placing the new vessel in the South China Sea will raise questions over whether it is intended to be a show of force over Taiwan, as part of Beijing's One China policy - based on the belief that Taiwan is an integral part of China.

Military chiefs believe the new carrier will be well positioned to deal with 'complicated situations'

The move could cause a flashpoint among China's rivals in the region, including Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

The US has been vocal over what it sees as Chinese expansion in the South China Sea.

This week White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the US 'is going to make sure that we protect our interests there'.

Donald Trump's pick for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, told his Senate confirmation hearing that the US should deny China access to the islands

And he added that: 'We're going to make sure that we defend international territories from being taken over by one country.'

But he refused to be pressed on whether that would involve physically denying China from accessing seven man-made islands in the South China Sea.

And Donald Trump's pick for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, told his Senate confirmation hearing that the US should deny China access to the islands.

In response, Beijing's Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying warned the US to keep out of the dispute.

She said China has 'indisputable sovereignty' over the South China Sea and is committed to safeguarding it.

She added that China preserves freedom of navigation in those waters - a concern the US has repeatedly challenged as it stepped up its military presence in the region.

The move to add a second aircraft carrier to China's fleet comes at a time of heightened tensions between the US its regional rivals

The comments at the regular briefing in Beijing were followed up by the most senior Foreign Affairs spokesman on NBC News, who said 'there might be a difference' of opinion over the sovereignty of these islands, 'but it's not for the United States' to get involved in.

'That's not international territories, that's Chinese territories,' said Lu Kang.

'Countries have already come back to the original agreement that maybe for the time being we could set aside those sovereign disputes, and focus on some joint developments, and working together to maintain the peace and stability in this region.'

The references by US officials to blocking China's access to artificial islands have caused concern among analysts about a potential for military escalation in the South China Sea.

'If the U.S. takes actions against China's moves to protect their own sea territories, it may result in a serious military confrontation,' said Sun Hao, an international relations expert at the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing.

Teng Jianqun, a scholar at the China Institute of International Studies, said he didn't believe the U.S. would follow through on the threat of a blockade, saying 'it's like announcing war. That would be ridiculous.'

'Both Tillerson and Spicer seem to be trying to show China that the Trump administration will adopt a tougher approach on the South China Sea, but it's evident that they haven't yet developed a policy,' said Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She said the Trump administration needed to send 'clear, consistent' signals to China.

China has displayed its military might as the country celebrates the Lunar New Year.

CCTV News, the state television station, broadcast a short clip last week showcasing China's Rocket Force, a part the People's Liberation Army (PLA) which handles the country's growing missile arsenal, reported the People's Daily Online.

In the clip, PLA soldiers at the Rocket Force sent New Year wishes to the public in front of six DF-15 ballistic missiles, which have been dubbed the country's 'secret weapon' by Chinese media.

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China's state TV showed a clip with PLA Rocket Force and six missiles for the Lunar New Year

The soldiers sent Lunar New Year wishes to the Chinese public during the short clip

The Rocket Force appeared in a programme broadcast on CCTV 7, a channel dedicated to showing military and agricultural content.

The soldiers stood in a rectangular formation and held a banner which read: 'Officers and men from the Rocket Force wish people around the country a happy New Year.'

Six military trucks were parked behind the troop and six white missiles were erected behind the trucks.

The weapons have been identified as the DF-15B short-range missiles by various Chinese media, including Beijing Daily.

According to the report, the DF-15B missile is an improved version of the original DF-15 missile and debuted in 2009 during the military parade to celebrate China's 60th National Day.

The missile can reportedly travel at the speed of 2,000 metres (1.4 miles) per second and its striking accuracy is within 30 metres (98 feet).

The six missiles behind the Rocket Force have been identified as DF-15. The short-range ballistic missiles were pictured during a military parade on September 3, 2015, in Beijing

DF-15 made its debut during the military parade to celebrate China's 60th National Day in 2009. Pictured, the missiles participated in a military parade at Tian'anmen Square in 2015

Yangtze Evening News, a major evening newspaper in eastern China, billed DF-15B as the country's 'secret weapon'.

The report, written in 2015, suggested that the DF-15B is the type of missile that Chinese PLA holds the most in number.

The article said 'should anything happens between the two sides of Taiwan Strait', it would be the main weapon to strike the 'important targets in Taiwan'.

DF-15B's firing range is between 900-1,200 kilometres (560-745 miles), said China.com.

China's PLA Rocket Force was founded on January 1, 2016. It was renamed from the former Second Artillery Corps in the two million strong membership of the PLA.

In December, the CCTV News broadcast another clip featuring the PLA Rocket Force, which showed the military drills the troop had carried out in its founding year.

The PLA Rocket Force was founded on January 1, 2016. Pictured, Chinese President Xi Jinping conferred the military flag to Li Zuocheng, commander of the PLA, at the founding ceremony of the Rocket Force

Li Zhenglian, a brigade commander of the Rocket Force, told the CCTV News reporter: 'As long as there is an order, I am ready to bring out [soldiers] at any time, I can fire [missiles] at any time and I can strike [targets] accurately.'

The news report introduced one particular set of drills the Rocket Force had had at the beginning of 2016. The force was said to be divided into two sides, the Blue Team and the Red Team, and staged more than 10 rounds of mock battles.

On its inauguration ceremony, the Chinese President Xi Jinping said the move to form the Rocket Force was a major decision made to 'realise the Chinese dream of a strong military', reported People's Daily Online.

The decision was also a 'strategic step to establish a modern military system with Chinese characteristics', said President Xi.

According to Global People magazine, the DF missiles are the first series of missiles completely built by the Chinese people and is the country's main weapon for national defence.