Vietnam has revved up South China Sea land reclamation efforts this year, beginning construction on eight previously untouched Spratly Islands features.
The U.S. and the Philippines announce a joint task force to deter what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calls Beijing’s “coercion” in the South China Sea.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday discussed with his Philippine counterpart China’s recent positioning of “militia vessels” near the Philippines in the South China Sea.
The Trump administration escalated its actions against China on Monday by stepping squarely into one of the most sensitive regional issues dividing them and rejecting outright nearly all of Beijing’s significant maritime claims in the South China Sea.