#XRPETF China has seized Sand Cay island in the South China Sea, which belongs to Vietnam - FT.

Chinese military occupied the uninhabited island with Vietnamese facilities and a fishing station. They raised the flag of the People's Republic of China and declared the territory as their own.

This is the first time in many years that Beijing has officially asserted control over new territory in the South China Sea. The island is located just a few kilometers from the Philippine island of Titu, where one of Manila's main military bases is situated. The seizure could escalate tensions between China, Vietnam, and the Philippines amid large-scale US-Philippine exercises in the region.