Moviegoers may be surprised to learn that the forthcoming “Barbie”—a movie based on the popular children’s doll toy franchise—has been banned in Vietnam over its depiction of an international maritime dispute with the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
The PRC—a single-party state controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—has asserted maritime rights to much of the South China Sea with a map commonly featuring nine dashes. The PRC and communist Vietnam are two of several nations surrounding the South China Sea that have asserted overlapping claims to the body of water.
