Sino-American contest in the South China Sea
The United States and China have been involved in a geostrategic competition in the South China Sea.
China's claims of sovereignty over the South China Sea, which is estimated to contain 11 billion barrels of oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, have antagonized other claimants. These other claimants include Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
The United States has not made any territorial claims in the South China Sea. The U.S. has urged that disputes be settled without coercion and on the basis of international law.
The U.S. has also supported the Philippines in upholding the rules-based international order and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.
The People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC, also known as Taiwan) claim almost the entire South China Sea.
Their claims are demarcated within the "nine-dash line". These claims overlap with almost every other country in the region.
