3. South China Sea — Episode — Madam Secretary

3. South China Sea

After U.S. environmental activists protesting China's damage of a South China Sea reef are arrested for spying, Elizabeth finds herself in a stalemate with the Chinese foreign minister as she lobbies for their release. Also, Henry pushes the FBI to investigate one of Elizabeth's former students who he suspects is his family's cyber-stalker, and President Dalton's trade visit to Vietnam brings back memories of serving there during the war.

Plot summary and ending

Spoilers ahead. Coverage follows the scope labeled below.

Complete story — includes the ending

A group of young activists land on an atoll in the South China Sea to make a video protesting China's devastating construction there and are captured by the Chinese military. Elizabeth and Conrad visit Vietnam to discuss providing them with additional military hardware. Chinese fighter jets start flying too close to US naval ships in the South China Sea. When one of the planes misjudges the distance and hits a ship's tower, killing three sailors, Elizabeth convinces Conrad to talk directly with China's president before jumping directly to a military response. Their stalker terrorizes Elizabeth's family by hacking into their home and turning lights and appliances on and off.

Sources and content license

Source and revision history · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Madam Secretary season 3. HTML formatting and reference markers removed. · Content license