The South China Sea is considered to be one of the busiest waterways in the world and is a significant gateway for trade and merchant shipping. The South China Sea disputes are maritime and island claims between different sovereign states in the region. The countries party to these disputes are China, Brunei, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia and are geopolitically located in the Indo-Pacific region.

The strategic location of the region provides access to an estimated 11 billion barrels of oil, 90 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, and 10% of the world’s fisheries. Along with this, the Sea witnesses 30% of the global shipping trade of almost 3 billion dollars’ worth, and it is no surprise that many nations are involved in a row over its ownership. The People’s Republic of China laid claim to the land based on an unofficial map from the 1940s. Moreover, satellite imaging has intercepted Chinese vessels turning rocks present in the water body into islands fit to occupy. This manages to provide a tactical spot for military bases.

Latest updates: China was recently in the news for unilaterally changing things on the ground in the South China Sea. In the middle of the global coronavirus pandemic, it is busy increasing its presence in the SCS. It approved the establishment of two districts to administer disputed Paracel and the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. Before that, Beijing had issued new names for 25 islands or reefs and 55 undersea entities in the South China Sea in a bid to reaffirm its sovereignty in the region.

How this all came to play out, is given below:

1988: Chinese and Vietnamese forces had an altercation in the Johnson South Reef near the Spratly Islands where China annexed the land present there.

1995: China takes over the region of Mischief Reef despite protests from the Philippines.

2009: China submits the disputed 9 Dash Line map which lays historical claim to almost 90% of the South China Sea.

2012:

• February: China’s then Foreign Minister claims that no country, including China, has the rights to sovereignty over the entire South China Sea.
• March: China detains Vietnamese fishermen, alleging that they were fishing illegally.
• April: The Philippines and the United States hold a joint military exercise in the water body.
• June: Vietnam lays claim to the Paracel and Spratly Islands. China increases guard.
• December: China states’ rights to the East China Sea in the United Nations.

2013:

• January: China refuses to participate in an arbitration under the UNCLOS at The Hague.
• April-December: China and the US continue to conduct exercises in the South China Sea, avoiding narrow skirmishes.

2014:

• January: Hainan, a Chinese southern province says that international fishermen require permits before entering the Sea.
• April: Satellite photos show China building a man-made island off the Mischief Reef. US signs agreement with the Philippines for US troop and ship rotations in the region.
• March: Chinese-Vietnamese business ties are damaged when China moves an oil rig near the Paracel Islands. However, they remove it when protests erupt.
• August: Chinese fighter jet intercepts US Navy surveillance aircraft.

2015-16: Tensions continue to rise amidst the parties involved.

2018:

• May: Chinese bomber lands on Woody Island whose reach could take out nearly all of the Philippines.
• September: US, Chinese warships almost collide.

2019: Chinese survey ship spends months in Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

2020

• February: Chinese naval ship allegedly aims its weapon control system at a Philippine ship.
• March: China opens new research stations at the Fiery Cross Reef and the Subi Reef.
• April: Vietnam lodges a complaint against China as the latter’s vessel sank a Vietnamese fishing boat.
• May: A six month stand-off between Chinese, Malaysian, and Vietnamese ships ends.
• July: The United States declares Chinese claims to the South China Sea “unlawful”.

Aishwarya Says:

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