Regional reactions to China's maritime activities in the South China Sea involve how China’s maritime activities within the South China Sea have caused a range of reactions and responses from the various regional nation-states bordering the South China Sea. These nation-states include Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan (Republic of China), Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Singapore. All the nation-states mentioned, besides Singapore, possess overlapping territorial claims within the South China Sea, which are at odds with China’s claims. China's maritime actions in the South China Sea include a broad range of measures, stretching from the deployment of maritime militias and the coast guard to artificial land reclamation. China has argued that their maritime activities are due to them enforcing the nine-dash line, which encompasses China's maritime claims in the South China Sea, which has been ruled as going against the UNCLOS. According to various scholars, the measures China have been utilizing can be described as salami-slicing, grey-zone warfare, and lawfare. The responses towards China's maritime activities from its regional South-Eastern neighbors vary from deterrence, escalation and diplomatic protests to appeasement, de-escalation and cooperation.
Vietnam
Vietnam and China have been engaged in longstanding territorial disputes within the South China Sea, culminating to the Chinese takeover of the Paracel Islands in 1974 and expansion in the Spratly Islands in 1988. China’s maritime actions against Vietnamese maritime sovereignty takes the shape of apprehension of sinking Vietnamese fishing boats to the seizing of maritime territories within the Johnson South Reef, Spratly Islands and the Paracel Islands through salami-slicing techniques.
Recently in May 2022 Hanoi protested against Chinese naval drills near the Paracel Islands with Le Thi Thu Hang, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stating that “China’s military drills in Hoang Sa archipelago seriously violate Vietnam’s sovereignty over these islands.”
In response to China’s maritime behavior in the South China Sea, Vietnam together with the Philippines, have been the frontline actor in opposing China's actions in the South China Sea. The response from Vietnam against China's maritime actions include the deployment of their own fishing militias, military modernization, and lawfare. Internationally, Vietnam has also been utilizing its influence within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to rein in China’s maritime ambitions while also deepening strategic cooperation with the United States and other major powers. For Vietnam, these multi-pronged measures serve as a demonstration of its readiness to preserve its sovereignty.
However, the intensity of Vietnam's opposition has varied over time, which experts argue is due to Vietnam needing a stable bilateral relations with China in order to maintain its own economic development, as China is its largest trading partner. Thus, there have been several instances which saw Vietnam engage in appeasement policies towards China, especially when the former feels like it can concede ground. According to various expert in the field, the reasoning behind Vietnam's varying responses serve to “keep the diplomatic channels with Beijing open”, while also upholding the bilateral agreements it has with China.
Thus, various experts argue that Vietnam’s response towards China's maritime within the South China Sea is confined itself to any particular kind of action in response to China’s actions. On the contrary, Vietnam has employed a wide range of responses from military modernization to defense diplomacy displaying a degree of situational deftness. Thus, Vietnam's response to China’s actions in the South China Sea highlights the former’s balancing act of appeasement while simultaneously keeping its sovereignty and maritime interests intact.
The Philippines
The Philippines and China have been engaging in longstanding territorial disputes within the South China Sea. This has led to instances from the apprehension of Filipino fishermen by Chinese authorities to armed stand-offs in Scarborough Shoal, leading to the Chinese take-over of the maritime area. And recently in April 2023, ships representing the coast guards from both countries faced off with each other near Second Thomas Shoal.