China opposes Vietnam s building work on disputed reef in South China Sea

BEIJING – China opposes Vietnam’s construction activities on a disputed islet in the South China Sea known as the Barque Canada Reef, said its Foreign Ministry on Feb 19.

Occupied by Vietnam since the 1980s, the reef in the Spratly Islands is claimed by several countries in a dispute that has intensified as China and the United States vie for influence in Vietnam.

The reef is “part of China’s territory”, ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told journalists, adding that China has always opposed “illegal occupation” of islands and reefs.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea despite overlapping claims in the busy waterway by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Vietnam’s land reclamation has expanded the reef by 10 times since 2022, according to a study by Guangdong Ocean University and China’s Natural Resources Ministry that is being reviewed for publication in the Journal of Tropical Oceanography.

The study added that Vietnam has dredged a channel 299m wide at the reef, sufficient to berth large vessels, such as warships.

In 2024, China rebuffed Vietnam’s claims of sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly island chains, saying its own claims to the two island chains were backed by history.

Vietnam has previously cited “full legal basis and ample historical evidence” for its claims to the reef.

The neighbours, who have close economic ties, agreed to step up cooperation on security matters in a move towards building a community with a “shared future”, during a trip to Hanoi last December by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled that China’s South China Sea claims were not supported by international law, a decision Beijing rejected.

“China will strive for an early conclusion of the code of conduct in the South China Sea and jointly safeguard peace