In Southeast Asia, US–China Tensions Flare on Social Media

In Southeast Asia, US–China Tensions Flare on Social Media
A Chinese coast guard ship (back) sails next to a Vietnamese coast guard vessel near China's oil drilling rig in disputed waters in the South China Sea on May 14, 2014. (Hoang Dinh Nam/AFP via Getty Images)
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Tensions between the United States and China over the South China Sea have erupted into a war of words on social media, in what analysts see as a change in U.S. strategy amid a burgeoning superpower rivalry in Southeast Asia.
After Washington last week hardened its position by explicitly rejecting Chinese maritime claims in the South China Sea, U.S. embassies in the region produced an unprecedented flurry of op-eds and statements criticizing Beijing’s actions.