The story of the “nine-dash line”, the so-called China’s claim in the South China Sea, or the East Sea as it is called in Vietnam, seems to have sunk into the past after the award of the Arbitral Tribunal in the Philippines case against China in 2016. In this ruling, the Tribunal rejected the so-called “historic rights” of China in the waters within the “nine-dash line”. The idea is that the “nine-dash line” no longer exists after the ruling of the Arbitral Tribunal, but recently, the international press is stirred about the “nine-dash line” but under a new shape.

The tension in the South China Sea (called the East Sea in Vietnam) in 2017 is considered lower than in previous years. The Chairman’s statement of the 31st ASEAN Summit on November 13, 2017, took note of the improving relations between ASEAN and China in relation to the South China Sea matter. How should this improvement be explained? What are main factors affecting that improvement? Are the South China Sea disputes being managed? To answer those questions, the main events into this region must be taken in consideration.

The change of the US president has brought about unforeseeable developments in the policies of the US and regional countries. ASEAN could not reach agreement on a joint statement on the ruling. The effect of the ruling and its future application remain unanswered questions.

Vietnam on July 12 welcomed the final ruling issued by an international tribunal in The Hague, which rejected China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea (East Sea).

The way in which rising powers like China interact with international institutions and laws produces and expressees imaginaries. They can also turn into a referent object or an arena for the collective rearticulating of underlying values, visions and hopes. In other words, this approach is close to the understanding that the new normative order in East Asia has been constructed.