U.S. Rejects Most Chinese Maritime Claims in South China Sea

HONG KONG—The U.S. declared its official opposition to a swath of Chinese statements in the South China Sea, in an unusually immediate problem to Beijing’s endeavours to assert management in the strategic waters.

Asserting the policy change on Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo characterized the final decision as an energy to uphold intercontinental law against what he termed a “might can make right” campaign by China to coerce and intimidate its Southeast Asian neighbors into ceding their pursuits.

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