The dispute over who has claim to the South China Sea has been a source of discord for decades. Over the past few years, China has been making advances to claim international waters in the South China Sea. The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean. The sea is bordered by China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam. The islands in the South China Sea can be broken down into the Spratly and Paracel islands. The Spratly islands are a cluster of islands which occupy approximately 7.75 square kilometers, and are claimed by both China and Vietnam. The Paracel islands are a cluster of more than one hundred small islands and reefs. All together they occupy less than 5 square kilometers. The territory is claimed by China, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The South China Sea is an extremely important asset. There is an estimated 11 billion barrels of oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas deposits under this sea. The sea also accounts for about 10 percent of the global fishing, and about 30 percent of global maritime trade. Every year, an estimated $5.3 trillion worth of goods are transported through the South China Sea.