South China Sea: is a report on Vietnam’s reclamation a smokescreen from Beijing’s row with Manila?

The report last week by a Chinese think tank found Vietnam had reclaimed more land in the region over the past three years than in the previous four decades, warning such activity could “complicate and expand” disputes in the waters.

Titled Construction on Islands and Reefs Occupied by Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia in the Nansha Islands and released on May 14, the Beijing-based Grandview Institution said that until 2019, Hanoi carried out only “modest” reclamation efforts on 29 islands and reefs it controlled in the Spratly Islands, a disputed archipelago in the South China Sea.

But Vietnam has embarked on major dredging and landfill works in recent years and expanded the reclaimed area several times compared with the original 0.7 sq km (173 acres) of land, according to the report.

“Vietnam has carried out large-scale land expansion on several islands and reefs, adding 3 sq km of new land, far exceeding the total construction scale over the previous 40 years,” said Liu Xiaobo, the report’s author and director of Beijing-based Grandview’s Centre for Marine Studies.

“Beijing might also want to shift the blame to Southeast Asian claimants, including Vietnam and the Philippines, portraying them as the troublemakers.

“It aims to drive a wedge among Southeast Asian claimants, consequently diverting focus from its aggression in the South China Sea,” he said, adding that Beijing also hoped to weaken Vietnam’s position and alienate it from other claimants.

“In doing so, it aims to gain the upper hand in negotiating with Hanoi bilaterally,” Giang added.

Maritime tensions have been rising in the South China Sea in recent months between China and the Philippines, with Manila accusing Beijing of using water cannon and blocking