• Vietnam's island-building in the Spratlys is set to match and likely exceed China's activities.
• Satellite imagery reveals expansion efforts at eight previously untouched features.
• All 21 Vietnamese-occupied reefs now include artificial land.
• Vietnam has created about 70% as much artificial land as China by March 2025.
• China disputes Vietnam's reclamation efforts, citing claims over the territory.

Vietnam has significantly escalated its island-building activities in the Spratly Islands of the South China Sea, potentially rivaling and surpassing Chinese efforts, according to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Recent satellite imagery has confirmed that Vietnam has expanded its reclamation work across eight features that were previously untouched, contributing to a broader trend of increasing assertiveness in the region. The report highlights that all 21 rocks and low-tide elevations occupied by Vietnam have now been transformed into areas of artificial land, contrasting sharply with previous years where most were limited to basic structures like pillboxes, as noted by Reuters, Channel News Asia, and South China Morning Post.

The CSIS report details that Vietnam has concentrated its reclamation efforts on specific reefs, including Alison Reef, Collins Reef, East Reef, Landsdowne Reef, and Petley Reefs. Additionally, expansion activities have commenced at three features which already hosted medium-sized islands from prior reclamation projects: Amboyna Cay, Grierson Reef, and West Reef. By March 2025, it is projected that Vietnam will have constructed nearly 70% of the artificial land compared to China's efforts in the Spratlys, substantiating the likelihood of surpassing Beijing’s island-building activities, according to Reuters, Channel News Asia, and South China Morning Post.

Moreover, emerging infrastructure, including munitions storage, is now visible on Vietnamese-claimed reefs nearing completion of dredging, such as Barque Canada Reef and Discovery Great Reef. The report also indicated that while new munitions depots are being established, some longer features are unlikely to support full-length runway constructions; instead, Barque Canada is expected to host the only runway intended to connect with Vietnam’s existing airstrip at Spratly Island, as per findings reported by Reuters, Channel News Asia, and South China Morning Post.

In light of these developments, China's government has expressed opposition to Vietnam's construction on Barque Canada Reef, asserting its claim over the territory. This situation is further compounded by the backdrop of the 2016 ruling from the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, which deemed China's claims in the South China Sea to lack legal support, a judgment that Beijing has categorically dismissed, as highlighted by Reuters, Channel News Asia, and South China Morning Post.