China's military said it is keeping close watch on the agreement inked by US and Singapore to deploy the US P8 Poseidon spy plane to the city amid the heightened tensions brewing in the South China Sea.

Reacting to the inaugural US deployment of the P8 Poseidon spy plane to Singapore on Monday, China's defense ministry released a statement saying that the military will be "paying close attention" to the developments in the region and that it hopes the US move will not harm regional stability.

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"We are paying close attention to how the relevant situation develops, and hope bilateral defense cooperation between the relevant countries is beneficial to regional peace and stability and not the opposite," the ministry said in a brief statement on Tuesday.

China's foreign ministry, which is at odds with Washington over the South China Sea dispute, said the US deployment of P8 Poseidon was an obvious attempt to militarize  the region.

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Singapore Defense Minister NG Eng Hen released a joint statement welcoming the inaugural deployment of the plane in Singapore from December 7 to 14.

Reports indicate that the United States will deploy more spy planes to Singapore in the coming months.

Washington and China have accused one another of  trying to militarize the South China Sea region.

The United States has criticized China for building military facilities in reclaimed islands and reefs in the Spratly Islands, where the US recently conducted water and air patrol.

Last month, a US B-52 bombers flew near China's artificial islands. And in October, a US guided-missile destroyer sailed near the reclaimed areas of China.

China is claiming sovereignty over 95 percent of the energy-rich waters in the South China Sea  dismissing the claims of other countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei .

About $5 trillion of maritime trade passes through the disputed waters each year.

TagsUS P8 Poseidon, spy plane, China Defense Ministry, Foreign Ministry, regional stability, USB52 bombers, $5 trillion of maritime trade