Kin Cheung / AP
A senior Chinese foreign ministry official, Lu Kang, told NBC News today that the U.S. should stay out of the fight over who owns the South China Sea.
What prompted the comment: WH spokesman Sean Spicer said yesterday the U.S. was not going to let China take over the "international territories" in the South China Sea
"That's not international territory, that's Chinese territory," Kang said.
Secretary of State Nominee Rex Tillerson has also made it clear that the U.S. won't let China keep building islands in international waters.
For more details on the issue see the Axios Facts Matter on the South China Sea.