Telecoms extend 4G service to Nansha Islands

China's top mobile telecom carriers have launched 4G service on the Nansha Islands, in an effort to safeguard the country's legal claim in the South China Sea and to improve communication services for local people.

China Telecommunications Corp, the country's third-largest telecom carrier by subscribers, has expanded its 4G signal to seven reefs of the Nansha Islands, giving islanders faster internet speed and enabling them to make video calls and conduct online commerce.

The move came shortly after the country dismissed the ruling by the Arbitral Tribunal in The Hague that China has no "historic title" over the South China Sea.