There are two ways to break a system of international order.

One is to blatantly violate its rules with military force; the other is to chip away at its rules with actions that stay in the gray zone between what is permissible and what is not. The former is exemplified by Russia’s behavior in Ukraine; the latter, by China’s actions in the South China Sea.

In early June, when asked about the withdrawal of a Chinese survey vessel and its escort from Hanoi’s exclusive economic zone following a monthlong deployment that prompted complaints from Vietnam, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, “There is no such thing as entering in other countries’ exclusive economic zones.”

In August, China demanded that the Philippines remove the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded naval vessel, from Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef located within the Philippine exclusive economic zone. Insisting that the reef and its surrounding waters belong to China, a China Coast Guard ship fired water cannons to turn away Philippine boats on a resupply mission.