New satellite images prove it: just like China, Vietnam “polderizes” at all costs, that is to say, it creates artificial islets in the Spratly archipelago, a set of islands and reefs located in the South China Sea, an area also claimed by China and other neighboring countries.
In just one year, the Vietnamese have reclaimed nearly 170 hectares of land from the sea. In satellite images published by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative website (IMTA), based in Washington, you can clearly see new ports and paved tracks emerging from the sea.
“ Excavation and reclamation activities undertaken in 2022 are substantial and signal an intention by Vietnam to fortify its occupied locations in the Spratleys reads AMTI’s new report. Even if on the scale of the work carried out by China in this area, that of Vietnam seems much more modest.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea and has already created numerous military posts there on artificial reefs, to the chagrin of Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan, which covet also, this sea route through which goods for thousands of billions of dollars pass each year. Waters also rich in fish and hydrocarbons.
►To re-read: [Infographies] China or Vietnam, which “polderizes” the Spratly Islands the most? (2016)