U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday the United States expects to have "very serious" talks with China about militarization of the South China Sea after reports that Beijing deployed advanced surface-to-air missiles to a disputed island.

Reports that China has deployed an advanced surface-to-air missile system to one of the disputed islands it controls in the South China Sea have been created by certain Western media, the country's foreign minister said on Wednesday.

China appears to have deployed surface-to-air missiles on a disputed island in the South China Sea, say reports.

U.S. President Barack Obama said on Tuesday he and leaders of Southeast Asian countries discussed the need to ease tensions in the South China Sea, and agreed that any territorial disputes there should be resolved peacefully and through legal means.

President Barack Obama will press leaders from Southeast Asia to boost trade and back common goals for the South China Sea during a summit starting on Monday that the White House hopes will solidify U.S. influence in the region.

China accused the United States on Monday of seeking maritime hegemony in the name of freedom of navigation after a U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of a disputed island in the South China Sea.

The US deployment of a navy vessel to the South China Sea in waters close to disputed islands in the archipelago claimed by Beijing has been viewed as being 'intrusive' in a commentary by the state-run Xinhua news agency. It has accused Washington of 'threatening the sovereignty of other countries and challenging the international order' by sending a navy vessel 'without China's authorisation'.

China strongly condemned the United States after a U.S. warship deliberately sailed near one of the Beijing-controlled islands in the hotly contested South China Sea to exercise freedom of navigation and challenge China's vast sea claims.

The United States and China sparred Wednesday on how to deal with North Korea's latest nuclear weapons test and ease rising tensions over territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

The amount of military facilities China builds on islands in the South China Sea depends on the level of threat it faces although China does not seek militarisation, the navy chief told his U.S. counterpart on Wednesday.