Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday called out Beijing’s actions in the South China Sea and sought to assure countries in Asia that they won’t have to choose between the U.S. and China. “We know that Beijing continues to coerce, to intimidate, and to make claims to the vast majority of South China Sea,” Harris said. The South China Sea is a resource-rich waterway that’s a vital commercial shipping route. But Beijing ignored the tribunal ruling and even increased its presence by deploying vessels to patrol the waters and building artificial islands in the last few years.