Paracel Islands
 

Map of the Paracel Islands

Population: No indigenous inhabitants; note: there are scattered Chinese  garrisons (Jul 2003 est.)

1537                       Portuguese sailor de Pinto names the islands
                             the Ilhas dos Tavaquerro.
1885                       China restates its claim to the Southern Islands.
1887                       Claimed by France as part of French Indochina (see Vietnam).
1932                       China protests French sovereignty over the islands.
21 Dec 1933                Annexed to French Indochina (see Vietnam), part of Ba Ria 
                             province.
 4 Apr 1939                Japan declares the Paracel Islands a protectorate.
1941                       Annexed by Japan, part of Taiwan province.
Oct 1946                   Claimed by Republic of China (Xisha Islands), part of Gugangdong
                             province.
1949                       Claimed by Vietnam.
 7 Jul 1951                Claimed by South Vietnam.
 8 Sep 1951                Japan officially renounces sovereignty.
22 Oct 1956                Formally annexed by South Vietnam, part of Phuoc Tuy province.
15 Jun 1956                North Vietnam declares that the Xisha and Nansha
                             (Spratly) Islands are historically Chinese territories.
13 Jul 1961                Placed under Quang Nam province by South Vietnam.
19 Jan 1974                Annexed by the People's Republic of China, part of Gugangdong
                             province (from 13 Apr 1988, Hainan province); South Vietnmese
                             forces are expelled.
 1 Jul 1976                Claimed by Vietnam (Hoang Sa).
 

Territorial Disputes: Occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam.

Spratly Islands
 

Map of the Spratly Islands -------------- Map of competing claims ----------------- Map of occupations

Population: China (about 450 soldiers); Malaysia (70-90); the Philippines  (about 100); and Vietnam (about 1,500); Brunei is a claimant but has no outposts (Jul  2003 est.)

1211                       Island group is first shown on a Chinese map.
1405                       Visited by China (Nansha Qundao [Southern Islands]).
1530                       Sighted by Portuguese explorer Alvarez de Diegoz.
1606                       Claimed by Spain as part of the Philippines .
1791                       Visited by British Capt. Henry Spratly, named the Spratly Islands.
1710                       Chinese Ching dynasty claims two northern islands and builds a
                             temple on North East Cay.
1798                       British navy builds an iron observation tower on Itu Aba.
1802                       Claimed by Vietnam (Bai Cat Vang [Golden Sandbank] or Truong Sa
                             [Long Islands]).
1885                       China restates its claim to the Southern Islands.
1887                       Claimed by France as part of French Indochina (see Vietnam).
1898                       Specifically excluded from Philippine territory by Treaty of Paris.
10 Apr 1930                France occupies Itu Aba Island and Amboyna Cay.
1932                       China protests French sovereignty over the islands.
21 Dec 1933                Annexed to French Cochinchina (see Vietnam), part of Ba Ria 
                             province.
15 Jun 1938                Established as the administrative unit of Truong Sa within Thua
                             Thien province by the Governor-general of French Indo-China .
 5 May 1939                Divided into 2 agencies- Croissant and dependencies and Amphirite
                             and dependencies- by Governor-general of French Indo-China.
 4 Apr 1939                Japan declares the Spratly Islands a protectorate.
1941                       Annexed by Japan, renamed Shinnan Shoto (New Southern Islands),
                             part of Taiwan province; Japan builds submarine base on Itu Aba.
Oct 1946                   Claimed by China, part of Gugangdong province.
1949                       Claimed by Vietnam.
 7 Jul 1951                Claimed by South Vietnam.
 8 Sep 1951                Japan officially renounces sovereignty.
15 May 1956                Claimed by Philippine citizen Tomas Cloma as the new state
                             of Kalayaan (Freedom Land).
15 Jun 1956                North Vietnam declares that the Nasha and Xisha (Paracel) 
                             Islands are historically Chinese territories.
22 Oct 1956                Formally annexed by South Vietnam, part of Phuoc Tuy province.
 8 Jun 1956                Taiwan takes Itu Aba (Taiping) island from Philippines.
13 Jul 1961                Placed under Quang Nam province by South Vietnam.
1969 - 1971                U.S. radar station on Spratly Island.
10 Jul 1971                Annexed by the Philippines (from Apr 1972 incorporated into Palawan
                             province).
5/6 May 1975               'Liberated' from Saigon regime by Provisional Republic of South
                             Vietnam.
 1 Jul 1976                Claimed by Vietnam (Truong Sa), part of Khanh Hoa province.
1978                       China occupies six atolls, taking them from Vietnam, part of 
                             Gugangdong province (from 13 Apr 1988, Hainan province).
11 Jun 1978                Philippines officially annexes the islands.
21 Dec 1979                Malaysia occupies Swallow Reef (Terumbu Layang); Malaysia publishes
                             a map of its continental shelf that encompasses 12 Spratly
                             Island features as part of Sabah state.
1983                       Malaysia claims Amboyna Cay as part of Sabah state.
1984                       Brunei establishes an exclusive fishing zone that encompasses 
                             Louisa Reef.
25 Feb 1992                Officially declared part of China by "Law on the Territorial Sea
                             and the Contiguous Zone."
Feb 1995                   China occupies Mischief Reef, Chinese fishing crews later expelled
                             by Philippine forces on 20-28 Mar 1995.
 4 Nov 2002                Claimants sign the "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in 
                             the South China Sea."
 

Territorial Disputes: All of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam;
China currently occupies 7 areas (Cuarteron, Fiery Cross, Gaven, Hughes, Johnson, Mischief, and Subi); Taiwan occupies one (Itu Aba); and Vietnam occupies 21 areas (Alison, Amboyan, Barque Canada, Central London, Cornwallis South, East London, Da Gri-san, Da Hi Gen, Great Discovery, Ladd, Landsdowne, Pearson, Petley, Sand, Sin Cowe, South Reef, South West Cay, Spratly, Tennent, and West London); parts of them are claimed by Malaysia (which occupies 3- Ardasier, Mariveles and Swallow Reefs); and the Philippines (which occupies 8 areas- Loaita, Nanshan, West York, Lamkian Cay, Thitu, North East Cay, Flat, and Commodore Reef); in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone that encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands but has not publicly claimed the island; claimants in Nov 2002 signed the "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea", a mechanism to ease tension but which fell short of a legally binding "code of conduct."