Permission from who? The Philippines? Does the U.S. recognize the Philippine claim to the reef above the Vietnamese and Chinese claims? I know the article uses weasel words like “about 200mi” from the Philippines, but Whitesun Reef is almost 300mi from the waters of the Philippines, you can look on a map for yourself. So, if 200mi is the internationally recognized limit from which one can hold an EEZ, which it is, this chain should belong to none of the countries in question, and the waters should be open to all of them without restriction.