USNI News Overview of South China Sea Disputes and U.S. Policy February 3, 2021 11:09 AM The following is the Feb. 2, 2021, Congressional Research Service In Focus report, South China Sea Disputes: Background and U.S. Policy. From the report Multiple Asian governments assert sovereignty over rocks, reefs, and other geographic features in the heavily trafficked South China Sea (SCS), with the People’s Republic of China (PRC or China) arguably making the most assertive claims. The United States makes no territorial claim in the SCS and takes no position on sovereignty over any of the geographic features in the SCS, but has urged that disputes be settled without coercion and on the basis of international law. Separate from the sovereignty disputes, the United States and China disagree over what rights international law grants foreign militaries to fly, sail, and operate in a country’s territorial sea or Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).