China assaults Filipino vessel in South China Sea clash

Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam also assert claims over portions of the waterway, a strategic trade route that facilitates over $3 trillion in annual ship-borne commerce.

(Reporting by Phuong Nguyen in Hanoi, Karen Lema in Manila, Selena Li in Hong Kong and Eduardo Baptista in Beijing; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)