China and the United States are in a “contest of wills” in the South China Sea as the US Navy ­conducts more operations to challenge Beijing’s claims, analysts said. Collin Koh, a maritime security expert at NTU Singapore, said: “My sense is the US seeks to enhance strategic communication to the wider international community about these operations, which would also become “visible” to regional governments as a form of strategic assurance. It’s also clear both the US and China aren’t keen to come to blows. It’s a contest of wills.”