Ryan Voorhees
@ryanvoorhees.bsky.social
International tax lawyer writing No Shots Fired, a project on how China uses coast guards, “fishing” fleets, and lawfare to fight a no-shots-fired sea war that still reaches you.
Pinned
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You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.
You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.
South China Sea “incidents” are often the point: routine patrols, fishing swarms, and lawfare that slowly make a status quo feel normal.
No Shots Fired field guide: noshotsfired.substack.com/p/start-here...
Follow & subscribe.
#SouthChinaSea #MaritimeSecurity #GrayZone
No Shots Fired field guide: noshotsfired.substack.com/p/start-here...
Follow & subscribe.
#SouthChinaSea #MaritimeSecurity #GrayZone
Start Here: What is No Shots Fired?
A guided tour of China’s maritime gray zone playbook: pressure, presence, and legal theater—no missiles required.
noshotsfired.substack.com
December 26, 2025 at 7:05 PM
South China Sea “incidents” are often the point: routine patrols, fishing swarms, and lawfare that slowly make a status quo feel normal.
No Shots Fired field guide: noshotsfired.substack.com/p/start-here...
Follow & subscribe.
#SouthChinaSea #MaritimeSecurity #GrayZone
No Shots Fired field guide: noshotsfired.substack.com/p/start-here...
Follow & subscribe.
#SouthChinaSea #MaritimeSecurity #GrayZone
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A rusting WWII-era ship, deliberately grounded on a reef, is now one of the most important pieces of real estate in Asia.
China is trying to squeeze it off the map without firing a shot.
This is the story of Second Thomas Shoal. 🧵
A rusting WWII-era ship, deliberately grounded on a reef, is now one of the most important pieces of real estate in Asia.
China is trying to squeeze it off the map without firing a shot.
This is the story of Second Thomas Shoal. 🧵
December 6, 2025 at 12:33 PM
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A rusting WWII-era ship, deliberately grounded on a reef, is now one of the most important pieces of real estate in Asia.
China is trying to squeeze it off the map without firing a shot.
This is the story of Second Thomas Shoal. 🧵
A rusting WWII-era ship, deliberately grounded on a reef, is now one of the most important pieces of real estate in Asia.
China is trying to squeeze it off the map without firing a shot.
This is the story of Second Thomas Shoal. 🧵
1/
You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.
You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.
December 6, 2025 at 3:48 AM
1/
You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.
You live nowhere near the South China Sea.
So why should you care that Chinese coast guard ships are blasting Philippine boats with water cannons around some reef you will never visit?
Short answer: because this is how power is being tested in the global economy’s most important sea lanes.