A recent report from a US-based think tank pointed out that Vietnam has continued to expand the scale of land reclamation in the disputed waters of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea over the past year, adding approximately 534 acres (216.1 hectares) of new land and advancing infrastructure construction on several reefs.
According to Bloomberg, the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) under the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington released a report on Friday stating that Vietnam's total reclaimed area in the Spratly Islands now reaches about 2,771 acres.
The report states that in addition to expanding the scope of land reclamation, Vietnam is also building dedicated facilities on reefs where reclamation has already been completed. Satellite imagery shows a new landmass at Vietnam's largest outpost, Barque Canada Reef, was completed in the spring of last year.
The report points out that Barque Canada Reef is now equipped with a navigation system, whose design is "very similar" to the navigation systems used by China at makeshift airfields in the Spratly Islands, providing navigational support to aircraft within a 100-nautical-mile radius.
AMTI stated that Vietnam is also embarking on a new round of reclamation works on several smaller coral reefs, with preliminary dredging starting at the end of last year. For some larger, more developed coral reefs, their infrastructure construction projects have also made clear progress.
The report believes that Vietnam's pace of land reclamation last year at one point approached that of China, but China subsequently once again expanded its leading edge.
Currently, the scale of China's island construction in the South China Sea still far surpasses that of Vietnam. The report notes that China's reclamation project at Antelope Reef may eventually make it the largest artificial island in the South China Sea, and China's total artificial land area is expected to rise to around 5,460 acres.
Vietnam and China have long been embroiled in disputes over sovereignty in the Paracel and Spratly Islands. However, last month in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President of Vietnam, and expressed the hope of further strengthening China-Vietnam relations.
The report states that in addition to expanding the scope of land reclamation, Vietnam is also building dedicated facilities on reefs where reclamation has already been completed. Satellite imagery shows a new landmass at Vietnam's largest outpost, Barque Canada Reef, was completed in the spring of last year.
The report points out that Barque Canada Reef is now equipped with a navigation system, whose design is "very similar" to the navigation systems used by China at makeshift airfields in the Spratly Islands, providing navigational support to aircraft within a 100-nautical-mile radius.
AMTI stated that Vietnam is also embarking on a new round of reclamation works on several smaller coral reefs, with preliminary dredging starting at the end of last year. For some larger, more developed coral reefs, their infrastructure construction projects have also made clear progress.
The report believes that Vietnam's pace of land reclamation last year at one point approached that of China, but China subsequently once again expanded its leading edge.
Currently, the scale of China's island construction in the South China Sea still far surpasses that of Vietnam. The report notes that China's reclamation project at Antelope Reef may eventually make it the largest artificial island in the South China Sea, and China's total artificial land area is expected to rise to around 5,460 acres.
Vietnam and China have long been embroiled in disputes over sovereignty in the Paracel and Spratly Islands. However, last month in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President of Vietnam, and expressed the hope of further strengthening China-Vietnam relations.