TOKYO: Cam Ranh Bay, in southern Vietnam on the South China Sea, is a good natural harbor. Its mouth is about one kilometer wide so the harbor is somewhat protected from waves. The bay was one of the key Soviet strongholds during the Cold War.

The Vietnamese military has a base on the bay to engage in patrol and surveillance activities over islands, such as the Spratlys, over which Vietnam is in a territorial dispute with China.

Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan claim sovereignty over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, while Vietnam and Taiwan also claim sovereignty over the Paracel Islands.