evidence: James Shoal is 50 miles from the coast of Malaysia, one of several countries that have appealed to the United States for help in countering China's aggressive attempt to seize 1 million square miles of fishing and energy resources. [...] In 2010, China planted a monument on the shoal declaring it the Chinese territory of "Zengmu Reef." The act was part of China's claims to all islands, fishing grounds and energy resources in a sea shared also by Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan. The South China Sea is also a major transit route for global shipping; half of all cargo in the world passes through the sea. Malaysia says China's claims are bogus and merely an attempt to seize resources such as possible oil and gas deposits that are well within the internationally recognized coastal territory of Malaysia.