U.S. President Barack Obama (R) shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a state arrival ceremony on the south lawn of the White House grounds September 25, 2015 in Washington, DC.

China said on Friday it would not stand for violations of its territorial waters in the name of freedom of navigation, as the United States considers sailing warships close to China's artificial islands in the South China Sea.



A U.S. defense official told Reuters on Thursday the United States was considering sending ships to waters inside the 12-nautical-mile zones that China claims as territory around islands it has built in the Spratly chain.



Western media reports quoted U.S. officials as saying the action could take place within a matter of days, but awaited a decision by U.S. President Barack Obama.



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The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, Admiral Harry Harris, declined to say on Friday whether the United States would carry out the plan. But he made clear it was an option he had presented to Obama and said the United States must carry out freedom of navigation patrols throughout the Asia-Pacific.



"I simply won't discuss future operations," Harris told a Washington seminar. "With regards to whether we are going to sail within 12 miles, or fly within 12 miles, of any of the reclaimed islands that China has built in the South China Sea, I will reserve that for later."



Earlier on Friday, China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying warned against any such patrols.

