MANILA: The United States has asked claimants of the South China Sea to collectively act in concert against China to assert their sovereign rights in the disputed waterway with Vietnam showing others the way.
This 'posture' was suggested by US Defense Secretary Mark Esper who recently met with Philippines Defense Secretary, Delfin Lorenzana and Foreign Affairs Secretary, Teodoro Locsin Jr, said the Philippines Star.
In a press briefing, Esper proposed that 'acting collectively' would be the best way to 'get China on the right path,' added the portal.
The South China Sea is being contested by Southeast Asian countries such as Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
Esper also stressed: "I think it's incumbent upon all of us to take a very public posture and to assert our sovereign rights and to emphasize the importance of law.
"It is crucial that we stand together to preserve freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful uses of the sea."
Earlier this year, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo assured the Philippines that any attack on Filipino troops in the West Philippine Sea will trigger the 1951 mutual defence treaty between Manila and Washington.
Vietnam has seen to be doing something to remind China that it cannot gets its way all the time.
According to Forbes, Vietnam has responded to China's version of the South China Sea map by banning a film partly produced by China, 'Abominable,' as it shows the map with the so called 'nine dash line', encompassing areas claimed by Vietnam and the Philippines.
That’s the reason why Beijing launched a campaign to legitimize and disseminate this map by printing it on Chinese passports and books, displaying it on movies, and inserting it in GPS and smartphone devices.
Hanoi has also stepped up inspections of China-made smartphones to make sure that they come with the right map of the South China Sea version.
Vietnam did not stop there as it heightened inspections of automobiles GPS to ensure the right map is installed.
Vietnam's move has the potential to start a trade war that can spread to Malaysia and the Philippines, said an analyst at the Pushkin Institute in Athens, Stathis Giannikos.
"They, too, have taken measures against the Abominable film last month. And don’t count India out, a country with territorial differences with China,” he added.