WASHINGTON – Vietnam has been increasing its dredging and landfill work in the South China Sea, creating almost as much new land as in the previous two years combined, setting the stage for a record year of island-building, US researchers said on June 7.
Since November 2023, when the Washington-based think-tank issued its last report, Vietnam has created 280 new hectares of land, compared with 163ha created in the first 11 months of 2023 and 140ha in 2022, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies’ Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative said, in a new report.
China, which has been building islands in the South China Sea since 2013, claims sovereignty over vast swathes of it, including the areas where Vietnam has been building up islands.
The sea is one of the world’s most contested waterways, where more than US$3 trillion (S$4 trillion) of trade passes each year.
China, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam have lodged competing claims for some or all of the Spratly Islands.
The activity has raised fears that the area is becoming a flashpoint that could yield serious consequences in global affairs. REUTERS
Source link : https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/vietnam-speeding-up-south-china-sea-island-building-pace-us-researchers-say
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Publish date : 2024-06-08 03:00:00
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