evidence: Situated between China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam, the SCS is one of the most hotly disputed territories in the world.22 Each of these countries claims partial or complete sovereignty over the SCS and the islands, reefs, and rocks ("landmasses") located therein.23 To enhance or strengthen these competing claims, many of these states have built artificial islands or increased their military capabilities in the region.24 Of the six claimants to the area, only Brunei has not enhanced or constructed reefs and islands in the SCS in an attempt to bolster its claims.25 China’s actions in the region have been particularly aggressive.26 As mentioned above, Beijing claims sovereignty over landmasses and adjacent waters within its Nine-Dash line, which consists of most of the area within the SCS.27 While other countries bordering the SCS also claim sovereign areas and jurisdictions within the SCS, none of these claims are as extensive as China’s.28 These claims conflict with China’s broad claim over the SCS and its landmasses, resulting in the conflicts and disputes between the countries.29 [...] 36 Foreign Ministry, People’s Republic of China, "Statement of the Government of the People's Republic of China on China’s Territorial Sovereignty and Maritime Rights and Interests in the South China Sea," 2016, https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/. [...] 40 Teh-Kuang Chang, "China’s claim of sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel Islands: A Historical and Legal Perspective," Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law 23 (1991), 399, 408–10.