China should simply reach an agreement with the ASEAN countries with claims in the Spratlys to jointly divide and explore the area. Otherwise, it doesn't matter what you claim, they can't go ahead to exploit any potential oil reserves in the region due to the territorial disputes anyway.
On the contrary, I think the US should lead an agreement among the disputing nations to the detriment of China. The US must leverage its position in SE Asia to form a bloc of nations opposed to China. Getting an agreement would be a good way to do that. But I'd like to see an APTO, so what do I know.
Also, what came of that letter by party members calling for the dismissal of Bo's security chief? To me it sounded surprisingly brash, or is this more common than I think?