Vietnam has tired of China’s artificial islands, so he has decided to start building his own

China has been pulling tons of sand for more than a decade. And not only is he doing it for Build airports: They are dozens of artificial islands for expand its military power. It is about China’s strategy to claim the maritime territories that they consider their own and that are also doing in the Yellow Sea coast in front of South Korea. The problem is that one of its neighbors has been tired.

Vietnam has also begun to lift artificial islands in the same territory with a clear objective: to prevent China from conquering the area. AND The tension is servedclear.

Spratly Islands. It may seem more reef, but that of Spratly Islands It is tremendously important at the geopolitical level. It is a reef that is located between four countries whose relations, in some cases, are a hotbed: China, Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan, and they are also a set of rich islands in resources natural as fishing banks (suitable for a China to which His folders fall short), oil and natural gas. It is estimated that there are 105,000 million barrels of oil and many other millions of gas drums.

There is tension, therefore, to control those resources, but also because it is a relevant point at the strategic level. They are located on one of the most busy maritime routes and are key to both international trade as for world movement. Controlling that archipelago implies having an essential influence globally.

Claims. And the situation is a chicken coop. The archipelago is composed of a hundred islands and there are countries that carry decades claiming his sovereignty over it. On the one hand, China says that the fishermen of the Ming dynasty of the fifteenth century have already established themselves there, so the islands belong to them. In addition, in 1947 they made a map that showed how they all belonged to them, starting to occupy some of them in 1988.

Malaysia se put In the fight in 1979, claiming part of the archipelago, the same case as Brunéi. Philippines is another player on this board, occupying some islands and occupying some of them with soldiers, but the most persistent are Taiwan and Vietnam. Both demand the entire territory as their own. Taiwan, with the same foundation as China, and Vietnam, stating that the islands were part of the kingdom of Annam – predecessor of the country – during the nineteenth century.

Both China and Vietnam recovered archaeological remains to demonstrate that the islands belonged to them in the past and had to remain their property today. But since they did not convince each other, they decided to go to action.

Background. Thus, and at some point in 2013, China began to move. Taking advantage of the rocky parts of the reef close to the surface and using Dredging ships to lift the bottom of the sea, they began to build islands and extend some existing ones. In just five years, they created seven artificial islands, the transformation of atolls into comparative satellite images being evident.

Militarizing the archipelago. In this whole story, the military presence of the countries involved in the conflict has been key, starring even armed incidents between them. And one of China’s clear objectives is the militarization of this space with a double objective. On the one hand, the most obvious: if you create an island and the militarizas, you make sure that if someone wants it, you also have to arrive with armed troops, being able to trigger a greater conflict.

On the other, establishing and reinforcing the military presence in an area that, as we say, is key. It is something we have seen recently, with the discovery of A radar anti -furtive ships on one of the islands. And it is a radar, yes, but also a powerful message in an area where the United States also has the eye: if the US and its allies cannot operate poachers in the South China Sea, they may not be able to deal with the forces of the popular liberation army.

But well, it is not just a radar: there is also a missile launch platform, and in several of the islands occupied, created or expanded by China we can see presence of military infrastructure such as bases or airports. In this TWSJ video we can see perfectly the evolution of the islands:

Vietnam is planted. In 2021, Vietnam got tired of the situation and, being together with Taiwan the country that has the most interest in the archipelago, also began to lift islands in the Spratly. Mainly, for military and port presence that reinforce maritime logistics, but putting the direct in recent months.

Since June 2024, Vietnam has “grown” 641 new hectares and measurements Totals of expansion 1,343 hectares compared to 1,882 of China. And the expansion is being rapid: in 2021, Vietnam only had four advanced ports with port. Now, it has tripled that number with cases such as Barque Canada Reef in which only the atolon was intuited and now has even a landing floor.

Complaints from each other. The objective of one and others is to operate more time and in greater numbers on those islands before a relief arrives, being able to carry out maneuvers and patrols during the area throughout the year, but curiously, although Vietnam had already shouted in the sky before with China’s movements, it is now China who thinks that his neighbor is squeezing the nuts.

It was in February when the spokesman of the China Ministry of Foreign Affairs protested the Reef Barque Running Track. They have up The voice because they consider that they are going too far in a territory that they have illegally occupied. Vietnam, meanwhile, declared Last year that would do what was necessary to protect their territory. And that landing floor has not only sat badly to China, also Malaysia and the Philippines. The problem is that, like They point Some analysts, it is difficult to blame Vietnam when, precisely, the other three countries have been doing the same in recent years.

Recovered land. But beyond those artificial islands, China has gained ground to the International Sea in other parts of the territory. An example is that up enclaves like Ocean Flower Islandwhich encompasses three artificial islands of about 800 hectares aimed at being an international port, with business centers and even attraction parks.

Also Port Citydestined to house business centers to convert its 2.6 square kilometers into a kind of ‘new’ Dubai. Is there no brake on all this? Well … Indonesia tried, offering as a mediator in the conflict, but it is something that has not seduced the confrontated parts that, as we see, continue to choose to throw sacks of sand into the sea.

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