Xi Jinping's Unification of Taiwan

China is building military facilities around the South China Sea, including on the disputed Spratly Islands. The Philippines went to court about it, but it hasn't been able to enforce the ruling. It's not just Taiwan that China unilaterally claims as its own. Beijing also says that much of the East and South China Sea is its territory,. regardless of international law. These are areas rich in natural resources, from oil to fishing stocks. They're highly strategic. Global shipping routes worth trillions of dollars run through here. And finally, it could make it easier to seize Taiwan if it came to that.