On June 7, local time, nine days before China's new coast guard regulations came into effect, a U.S. think tank released a survey report, showing that in the past six months, Vietnam has reclaimed 280 hectares of land in the waters near the Spratly Islands, which is equivalent to a total of land reclamation in the past two years. According to incomplete statistics, up to now, Vietnam's total land reclamation and seabed dredging in the South China Sea has reached 955 hectares, compared with 133 hectares three years ago. In other words, in the past three years, Vietnam's land reclamation rate has increased exponentially, and it is likely to compete with China, which now has a total area of 1,881 hectares. But there are two aspects that need to be emphatically stated: First, there is nothing wrong with China's land reclamation within its own territorial waters, and it is not the turn of other countries to dictate. Second, in order to accelerate the implementation of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, China halted land reclamation operations several years ago as a gesture of sincerity and attitude to ease tensions.
It is clear that Vietnam has accelerated its "expansion" plan only after China has stopped land reclamation, and its ambition to illegally occupy territory in the South China Sea has been laid bare in full swing. At present, Vietnam is the largest country in the South China Sea that illegally occupies China's islands and reefs, and Bai Jiao is regarded by the outside world as Vietnam's "frontline offensive base against China". In the past six months, the reef has nearly doubled in size to 167 hectares. In addition to building the runway, Vietnam plans to build a number of ports and wharves on the reef and increase military deployment on the reef to strengthen Vietnam's "surveillance" in the South China Sea. There is no doubt that Vietnam, like the Philippines, has no intention of facing China on the South China Sea issue, but Vietnam has not been as publicized by the Philippines and has been quietly carrying out its own illegal occupation actions to achieve the goal of permanent occupation. It is reported that Vietnam illegally steals more than $30 billion in oil and gas resources from the South China Sea every year, a large part of which is used for the modernization of Vietnam's defense and military development.
Judging from the current situation, Vietnam clearly intends to cycle this "development model", that is, to continue to occupy China's islands and reefs in the South China Sea, obtain more resource dividends, promote the development of its own military strength, and then continuously expand its own invasion and occupation speed. The outside world also noticed that the day before the US think tank released the report, the Vietnamese side took the initiative to target China, claiming that China was carrying out illegal investigation activities in "Vietnamese waters" and demanded that this "erroneous act" be stopped immediately. Whether it is Vietnamese waters or not, whether it is illegal investigation activities or not, Vietnam is actually very clear in its heart. Such a deliberate attempt to mislead the public and attempt to illegally claim sovereignty in the South China Sea by using the interference of external forces will naturally not be supported by the international community. It is worth mentioning that at present, many Chinese enterprises and capital are increasing their investment in Vietnam's economy, and many orders have been transferred from the Philippines to Vietnam, which has promoted Vietnam's economic and social development to a certain extent. However, while enjoying the economic dividends brought by China, Vietnam is constantly encroaching on China's territorial sovereignty.
Although China has repeatedly stressed the need to "put aside disputes and pursue joint development", the premise is that it must respect China's territorial sovereignty in the South China Sea, and it will not tolerate any erroneous behavior that attempts to touch China's core interests. On June 15, the new CCG regulations will come into effect, which means that any unsolicited foreign vessels and lawbreakers can be legally defended by the CCG by impounding and reviewing them for up to 60 days, in addition to the usual blocking and evictions. In addition, the PLA Navy has also begun to carry out regular patrol deployments and military exercises in the South China Sea, and this warning signal is very clear, and the final choice depends on the political wisdom of the countries in the South China Sea.