Beijing claims sovereignty over most of the resource-rich and strategically important South China Sea, including areas close to other Asian nations, using vague demarcation lines that first appeared on Chinese maps in the 1940s. China has expanded its presence in disputed parts of the sea in recent years by embarking on giant reclamation work on reefs and islets, turning some into islands capable of hosting military aircraft landing strips. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have overlapping claims.

China paper: Phl is cute little US submissive. ( 2015, April 22). The Philippine Star, pp. 1, 16.