it’s a territorial argument that’s been
raging for centuries but recent
hostilities in 2015 have ramped up the
tension between nations
welcome to watchmojo.com down 10 crucial
facts you should know about the South
China Sea dispute number 10 what is the
current South China Sea dispute an
ongoing territory dispute between China
and other Southeast Asian countries the
problems in the South China Sea largely
focus on two island clusters the Spratly
and Paracel Islands China is looking to
expand and establish its command across
the sea by gaining control of the two
archipelagos but surrounding nations are
refusing to surrender their claims to
the land Taiwan Vietnam the Philippines
Malaysia and Brunei are all involved in
this situation which is also causing
international tension number nine when
did it begin
China has consistently laid claims to
the entire South China Sea especially
since the 1940s however historical
disputes and territorial claims date
back further still China says that
there’s evidence of Chinese nationals
using both the Spratly Islands as far
back as the 3rd century BC on the other
hand in the early 1800s Vietnam surveyed
the Paracel Islands before beginning to
build on them from this point forward
both countries have traded claims to
ownership with the Philippines
especially becoming involved in the 20th
century number 8 what is so special
about the area for China ownership of
the island groups is an opportunity to
shore up national security despite much
of the disputed land being mostly
submerged in water China is using the
small areas that do rise above sea level
as starting points to develop man-made
military bases while China reasons that
the bases are necessary to protect its
vast coastline other countries including
those vying for ownership and the US are
concerned about developments
furthermore the sea itself is thought to
contain a wealth of unexploited oil
natural gas and other minerals though
reports on the richness of the resources
differ the South China Sea is a valuable
region for anyone able to tap it number
seven what are the areas of contention
opposition to China is fueled by Chinese
encroachment into other exclusive
economic zones an e ez is an area of
ocean stretching 200 nautical miles from
the coast over which any state has
authoritative rights according to
international law the Paracel Islands
have been under Chinese control since
2012 despite the fact that they also
fall within Viet Nam’s EEZ the more
southerly spratly islands are situated
in an even more complex position within
which the maritime claims for six
countries overlap in terms of area the
spratly islands cover over 160,000
square miles but only around 1.5 of
those are above sea level the South
China Sea itself is an area of around
1.4 million square miles with China
seeking sovereignty over the vast
majority number six who is involved in
the conflict Vietnam is especially
involved in the Paracel Islands dispute
but also has a strong interest in the
Spratly situation given that they
currently control the greatest number of
islands at 29 the Philippines are
heavily involved in the Spratly standoff
as well with the EECS of Malaysia and
Brunei also drawn into the dispute the
conflict is felt even further afield
though as the South China Sea represents
one of the planet’s busiest shipping
routes India especially has called for a
solution as it frequently exports and
imports through the region while the
United States is another major
international power that is indirectly
affected number 5 who claims to own the
territory much of the dispute is built
on China’s insistence that a so-called
nine-dash line be adhered to a
demarcation line which encircles almost
all of the South China Sea including the
Spratly and Paracel Islands it was
originally conceived by China in
19:47 a geopolitical marker made amid a
post-world war international dividing of
territory the nine-dash line was
originally drawn up by the Republic of
China
which is now Taiwan it therefore forms
the basis of Taiwanese South China Sea
claims as well in 2009 China submitted a
map to the UN that included the
nine-dash line it was immediately
protested by the Philippines Malaysia
and Vietnam as of 2015 no further claims
to the nine – territory have been
officially lodged number four how have
countries staked their territory perhaps
the defining image of the dispute is the
one inspired by the Philippine
resistance to China’s territorial claim
a one-time u.s. Navy ship the Sierra
Madre was grounded by the Philippines at
second Thomas shoal in 1999 a disputed
area that lies a little over 100
nautical miles from the Philippines and
more than 800 miles from China it has
served as an outpost of sorts for Manila
although its effectiveness is waning by
the day Chinese Coast Guard cutters pan
the Sierra Madre in forcing its small
crew into an extremely isolated
existence on board an ever decaying
vessel China seems prepared to wait the
situation out in what is from an
international perspective a David versus
Goliath situation number three how has
this affected the region as the
situation has escalated relatively
quickly in recent years international
tension has spread further north with
Japan allegedly on the edge of becoming
involved as well in November 2015
Japanese media reported that the
country’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a
was quote opposed to all unilateral
attempts to change the status quo in the
South China Sea the reports were
subsequently confirmed by other Japanese
officials as the nation preempts the
effect that far-flung Chinese air bases
could have on its security Japan is also
concerned about the damage that a
Chinese controlled sea could inflict on
its economy
due to the disruption of trade routes
number two why did the United States get
involved the u.s. launched a freedom of
navigation operation in late October
2015
moving the USS lassen a guided missile
destroyer to within 12 nautical miles of
an area known as mischief reef a spot
situated in the Spratly Islands mischief
reef is a prime example of how China is
developing military bases but America’s
decision to deploy a significant warship
into the region served as a statement of
intent to Beijing the USA says its major
concern relates to the impact the
Chinese actions could have on
international trade while speculation
continues to mount regarding China’s
military intentions number one how will
this end
China has shown perseverance and
aggression in pushing the situation to
its current point with America already
involved Japan edging ever closer to
involvement and support for and against
the Chinese being given by other nations
the South China Sea has become a
priority region for international
affairs should the dispute develop into
a us-china standoff the intention is
only set to rise with China widely
considered a superpower of the future if
not already any outcome will be
indicative of just how influential the
Chinese are and could be if China’s
claim to the sea is recognized then
their global profile will soar even
higher did these facts get you thinking
to vote for which news story is covered
next
head over to watchmojo.com slash suggest
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
you
raging for centuries but recent
hostilities in 2015 have ramped up the
tension between nations
welcome to watchmojo.com down 10 crucial
facts you should know about the South
China Sea dispute number 10 what is the
current South China Sea dispute an
ongoing territory dispute between China
and other Southeast Asian countries the
problems in the South China Sea largely
focus on two island clusters the Spratly
and Paracel Islands China is looking to
expand and establish its command across
the sea by gaining control of the two
archipelagos but surrounding nations are
refusing to surrender their claims to
the land Taiwan Vietnam the Philippines
Malaysia and Brunei are all involved in
this situation which is also causing
international tension number nine when
did it begin
China has consistently laid claims to
the entire South China Sea especially
since the 1940s however historical
disputes and territorial claims date
back further still China says that
there’s evidence of Chinese nationals
using both the Spratly Islands as far
back as the 3rd century BC on the other
hand in the early 1800s Vietnam surveyed
the Paracel Islands before beginning to
build on them from this point forward
both countries have traded claims to
ownership with the Philippines
especially becoming involved in the 20th
century number 8 what is so special
about the area for China ownership of
the island groups is an opportunity to
shore up national security despite much
of the disputed land being mostly
submerged in water China is using the
small areas that do rise above sea level
as starting points to develop man-made
military bases while China reasons that
the bases are necessary to protect its
vast coastline other countries including
those vying for ownership and the US are
concerned about developments
furthermore the sea itself is thought to
contain a wealth of unexploited oil
natural gas and other minerals though
reports on the richness of the resources
differ the South China Sea is a valuable
region for anyone able to tap it number
seven what are the areas of contention
opposition to China is fueled by Chinese
encroachment into other exclusive
economic zones an e ez is an area of
ocean stretching 200 nautical miles from
the coast over which any state has
authoritative rights according to
international law the Paracel Islands
have been under Chinese control since
2012 despite the fact that they also
fall within Viet Nam’s EEZ the more
southerly spratly islands are situated
in an even more complex position within
which the maritime claims for six
countries overlap in terms of area the
spratly islands cover over 160,000
square miles but only around 1.5 of
those are above sea level the South
China Sea itself is an area of around
1.4 million square miles with China
seeking sovereignty over the vast
majority number six who is involved in
the conflict Vietnam is especially
involved in the Paracel Islands dispute
but also has a strong interest in the
Spratly situation given that they
currently control the greatest number of
islands at 29 the Philippines are
heavily involved in the Spratly standoff
as well with the EECS of Malaysia and
Brunei also drawn into the dispute the
conflict is felt even further afield
though as the South China Sea represents
one of the planet’s busiest shipping
routes India especially has called for a
solution as it frequently exports and
imports through the region while the
United States is another major
international power that is indirectly
affected number 5 who claims to own the
territory much of the dispute is built
on China’s insistence that a so-called
nine-dash line be adhered to a
demarcation line which encircles almost
all of the South China Sea including the
Spratly and Paracel Islands it was
originally conceived by China in
19:47 a geopolitical marker made amid a
post-world war international dividing of
territory the nine-dash line was
originally drawn up by the Republic of
China
which is now Taiwan it therefore forms
the basis of Taiwanese South China Sea
claims as well in 2009 China submitted a
map to the UN that included the
nine-dash line it was immediately
protested by the Philippines Malaysia
and Vietnam as of 2015 no further claims
to the nine – territory have been
officially lodged number four how have
countries staked their territory perhaps
the defining image of the dispute is the
one inspired by the Philippine
resistance to China’s territorial claim
a one-time u.s. Navy ship the Sierra
Madre was grounded by the Philippines at
second Thomas shoal in 1999 a disputed
area that lies a little over 100
nautical miles from the Philippines and
more than 800 miles from China it has
served as an outpost of sorts for Manila
although its effectiveness is waning by
the day Chinese Coast Guard cutters pan
the Sierra Madre in forcing its small
crew into an extremely isolated
existence on board an ever decaying
vessel China seems prepared to wait the
situation out in what is from an
international perspective a David versus
Goliath situation number three how has
this affected the region as the
situation has escalated relatively
quickly in recent years international
tension has spread further north with
Japan allegedly on the edge of becoming
involved as well in November 2015
Japanese media reported that the
country’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a
was quote opposed to all unilateral
attempts to change the status quo in the
South China Sea the reports were
subsequently confirmed by other Japanese
officials as the nation preempts the
effect that far-flung Chinese air bases
could have on its security Japan is also
concerned about the damage that a
Chinese controlled sea could inflict on
its economy
due to the disruption of trade routes
number two why did the United States get
involved the u.s. launched a freedom of
navigation operation in late October
2015
moving the USS lassen a guided missile
destroyer to within 12 nautical miles of
an area known as mischief reef a spot
situated in the Spratly Islands mischief
reef is a prime example of how China is
developing military bases but America’s
decision to deploy a significant warship
into the region served as a statement of
intent to Beijing the USA says its major
concern relates to the impact the
Chinese actions could have on
international trade while speculation
continues to mount regarding China’s
military intentions number one how will
this end
China has shown perseverance and
aggression in pushing the situation to
its current point with America already
involved Japan edging ever closer to
involvement and support for and against
the Chinese being given by other nations
the South China Sea has become a
priority region for international
affairs should the dispute develop into
a us-china standoff the intention is
only set to rise with China widely
considered a superpower of the future if
not already any outcome will be
indicative of just how influential the
Chinese are and could be if China’s
claim to the sea is recognized then
their global profile will soar even
higher did these facts get you thinking
to vote for which news story is covered
next
head over to watchmojo.com slash suggest
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
you
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