'Sovereignty declaration' taking shape

Museum to open next year will document China's long history with the sea and islands

China is building a museum in its southernmost Hainan province to display the culture of the South China Sea amid rising maritime tension caused by an imminent ruling in an arbitration case.

The National South China Sea Museum, on which construction began in November last year and which will open next year, will be "a platform of declaration of sovereignty over South China Sea", Chen Jiang, the museum project's director, said on Monday.