An Economist article titled Could Asia really go to war over these? with an arrow pointing to a small rocky island described potential conflicts (in both the East Asia chapter and in the Pacific/Oceans chapter). What is driving the conflict mentioned in this article?

answer; first blankindependent; second blank; /(french); ///

the secretary of state, appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the senate, is the president's chief foreign affairs adviser. the secretary carries out the president's foreign policies through the state department and the foreign service of the united states.