Vietnam carrying out ‘substantial’ expansion in South China Sea: US thinktank

Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a think tank based in Washington DC has discovered that Vietnam has carried out significant expansion in the South China Sea. Vietnam has carried out this expansion by dredging and landfilling many of its outposts at the South China Sea. According to a report from the Guardian, the think tank assesses that Vietnam is trying to solidify its claim in the disputed waterway. 

In the past 10 year, Vietnam has reclaimed 220 hectares of land. Spratly Islands, a group of disputed islands which China claims as well, has witnessed its landmass expand by 10 hectares. The research was conducted by CSIS’s Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI), by the use of commercial satellite imagery. 

Comparison with China

In comparison, China has reclaimed 3,200 acres of land from the year 2013 to 2016. However, the dredging and landfilling carried out by Vietnam in the Spratly Islands is significant. Tennent Reef, which reportedly was only capable of hosting two small pillbox structures, now has 26 hectares of artificial land. Spratly Island was originally Vietnam's biggest outpost but now Pearson Reef and Namyit Island are bigger than Spratly Island. 

South China sea dispute 

The South China Sea dispute is a long-standing territorial dispute between China and Vietnam, as well as several other countries, over the ownership of various islands and reefs in the South China Sea. The dispute has been ongoing for decades and has seen various escalations and tensions between the involved countries. At the heart of the dispute is the question of which country has sovereignty over a number of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands and the Paracel Islands. China claims sovereignty over virtually all of the South China Sea, including these islands, while Vietnam and several other countries have disputed this claim.

One of the major flashpoints in the dispute has been the construction of artificial islands by China in the South China Sea, which has been seen as an attempt by China to strengthen its claim over the disputed territory. Vietnam, along with other countries, has protested against these constructions and has called on China to halt its activities in the area. The dispute has also resulted in occasional skirmishes between the Chinese and Vietnamese navies, with both sides accusing the other of violating their territorial waters. The situation has been further complicated by the involvement of the United States, which has conducted freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea in support of Vietnam and other countries in the region.