The latest South China Sea statement made by the United States signals Washington will strengthen measures to challenge China’s resource claims. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a formal statement rejecting China’s claims to much of the offshore resources in the South China Sea as unlawful. Collin Koh Swee Lean, a Research Fellow at Singapore’s RSIS, said the US has long been criticised for lacking a South China Sea (SCS) strategy beyond performing freedom of navigation operations and theatre security engagements with regional allies and partners, “so this statement may result in a more holistic strategy beyond just using military tools to assert rules based order in the SCS.”