A Tense Sea, an Oil Deal: Can China and the Philippines Make It Work? The South China Sea is a contentious region, with Beijing and Manila locked in a longstanding dispute over territorial claims and resources.
However, what if the key to easing tensions lay not in grand diplomatic gestures or military showmanship, but rather in joint oil and gas exploration?
A recent report from the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies think tank suggests that cooperation on energy and environmental protection could alleviate tensions.