Barque Canada Reef

Barque Canada Reef (Filipino: Bahura ng Mascardo); Malay: Terumbu Perahu; Thuyền Chài Reef (Vietnamese: Bãi Thuyền Chài); Mandarin Chinese: 柏礁; pinyin: Bǎi jiāo, is a reef on the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. The reef has been occupied by Vietnam since 1988. It is also claimed by China (PRC), Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Taiwan (ROC). Barque Canada Reef is a shallow, long (nearly 30 km) and narrow (less than 4 km at its widest point) coral atoll in the Dangerous Ground zone. The nearest island is Amboyna Cay, just over 20 nautical miles to the south-west. The government of Vietnam began a major project to develop Barque Canada Reef in 2022. This activity involved dredging and reclaiming land, as well as erecting new structures such as harbors and sea walls. Just in 2024, its territory artificially increased from 238 acres (96.31 hectares) to 412 acres (166.73 hectares). an area equivalent to 75% of Monaco.