Southeast Asia stands to gain as US hardens South China Sea stance

Region welcomes US support for UN tribunal ruling rejecting China's maritime claims

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20200814 Subi Reef.jpg

The Subi Reef, a part of the Spratly Islands, pictured in May 2018: China has intensified its attempts to strengthen its claims to the South China Sea. © DigitalGlobe/Getty Images

Dr. Lynn Kuok is Shangri-La Dialogue senior fellow for Asia-Pacific Security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

It's taken four years, but the U.S. has finally thrown its weight behind a UN tribunal's sweeping rejection of Beijing's maritime claims in the South China Sea. Long overdue, Washington's support for the resource rights of Southeast Asia's littoral states is nonetheless positive.

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