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| Cornwallis South Reef (Image: Wiki Commons) |
By Shannon Tiezzi
A Chinese media report claims that Vietnamese land reclamation on a Spratly reef was washed away in a typhoon.
China has often had satellite imagery used against it as it built artificial islands in the South China Sea. This week, though, it’s China’s turn: a Chinese media outlet,China Youth Net, is using satellite images to enjoy some schadenfreude at Vietnam’s expense.
First, the site points to the satellite imagery as evidence that Vietnam “illegally” constructed artificial islands on “China’s Nanhua Reef,” one of the disputed features in the Spratlys (known as Cornwallis South Reef in English). China Youth Net said Vietnam had dredged up sand and built two “man-made islands” in the South China Sea. In the images, a trench (purportedly causing by Vietnam’s dredging) is clearly visible in the water around the feature.
However, the article then claims most of the sand was finally washed away by the ocean – “because of Vietnam’s low technological level” during the reclamation process. As evidence, China Youth Net provided satellite images of two unnamed reefs, from August and December 2016. In the December photos, much of the landmass has indeed washed away. The site concludes that last December’s Typhoon Jasmine “upset Vietnam’s calculations” by “blowing away” its artificial islands.
Read the full story at The Diplomat