The Spratlys are claimed in all or part by China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam and Taiwan. However, it is the Philippines and China that have been the most vociferous of late and postured most over their territorial interests.
Access to technology and finance has become less of a hindrance to offshore exploration and production activities compared with the growing territorial disputes between neighbouring Asian countries — the most notable of which is the dispute in the oil-rich Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, according to energy intelligence consultant GlobalData.
Vietnam,
