Saying US policy on the South China Sea is now “crystal clear,” Washington announced it will use all tools and legal responses it can provide to protect valid claims of countries across the world which recognize that China violated their legal territorial and maritime claims. US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said the strengthened US policy on South China Sea gives significant support to ASEAN leaders who have declared that the disputes must be resolved through international law, not “might makes right.” “For the first time, we made our policy on the South China Sea crystal clear. It’s not China’s maritime empire. If Beijing violates the international law and free nations do nothing, then history shows that the CCP will simply take more territory,” Pompeo said in a press briefing on Wednesday, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.

Lee-Brago, P., & Felipe, C. S. (2020, July 17). 'US to use all tools to protect valid SCS claims'. The Philippine Star, p. 4.