The United States' claims that China is militarising the South China Sea are "ridiculous", Beijing says.
Mattis said earlier this week the United States would pushback against what it sees as China's militarisation of the disputed islands in the South China Sea, despite drawing condemnation from Beijing for an operation in the region over the weekend.
"The United States military presence in the South China Sea is greater than that of China and other countries that surround the seas combined," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular briefing.
Hua also questioned whether the US Navy "freedom of navigation" operations were really about preserving the right for ships to sail through the region or an attempt to maintain hegemony.
"This sounds like a case of a thief crying 'stop thief' to cover their misdeeds," she added.
The Global Times, a popular state-backed Chinese tabloid, said in an editorial that China must prepare to forcefully respond to any "extreme" interference in the South China Sea by the United States.
"Aside from deploying defensive weapons on the Spratly Islands, China should build a powerful deterrence system, including an aerial base and a roving naval force and base," the paper said.
Reuters first reported that two US Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, prompting anger in Beijing, which claims most of the strategic waters where Chinese, Japanese and some Southeast Asian navies operate.
While the Sunday operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a sensitive time and days after the Pentagon withdrew an invitation to China to attend a major US-hosted naval drill.
Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence.
Recent satellite photographs showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.
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