Vietnam Accusses China Of Attacking Fishing Boats

Hanoi Says Chinese Shot At Boat -- Wall Street Journal

BEIJING—Vietnam accused a Chinese vessel of chasing and firing at a Vietnamese fishing boat in disputed waters on March 20, in the latest flare-up over the strategically important South China Sea.

Hanoi didn't say whether the Chinese vessel was a government craft; a state-run Vietnamese newspaper quoted the captain and owner of the fishing boat as saying it bore the markings of the China Marine Surveillance agency.

Chinese ships have clashed repeatedly with vessels from neighboring countries in the past two years as China has grown more assertive in its territorial claims. But they don't usually open fire—so this incident, if confirmed, could mark an escalation of tensions.

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More News On The Recent Maritime Clash Between China And Vietnam

China 'fired flares' at Vietnam boat in South China Sea -- BBC
China, Vietnam Clash Over Disputed Islands -- NPR
Vietnam accuses China of attack on fishermen in South China Sea -- Reuters
Vietnam demands fishing boat compensation -- UPI
China Says Its Flares Didn't Hit Vietnamese Boats -- ABC News/AP
China patrols disputed waters, denies firing on boat -- Global Post/AFP
China denies starting fire on Vietnamese fishing boat -- The Guardian
Chinese navy says "firing at Vietnamese boat" fabricated -- Xinhuanet (China)
Flares, gunshots, and fires, oh my: The latest South China Sea accusations fly -- Christian Science Monitor
Fire-Gutted Vessel Highlights Vietnam-China Maritime Dispute -- Voice of America

China Issues Warning To Vietnam To Stop Oil Exploration

China Tells Vietnam To Halt Oil Exploration In Disputed Waters -- Reuters

* China disputes Vietnam's account of incident last week
* China repeats warning against "unilateral" oil and gas exploration
* South China Sea is one of Asia's most sensitive military hotspots

BEIJING, Dec 6 (Reuters) - China told Vietnam on Thursday to stop unilateral oil exploration in disputed areas of the South China Sea and not harass Chinese fishing boats, raising tensions in a protracted maritime territorial dispute with its neighbour.

Vietnam had already expelled Chinese fishing vessels from waters near China's southern Hainan province, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily news briefing.

Hong's description of the confrontation last Friday was in contrast to the account by Vietnam, which said a Vietnamese ship had a seismic cable it was pulling cut by two Chinese fishing ships.

"Vietnam's statement is inconsistent with the facts," Hong said.

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More News On The Territorial Disputes Between China And Vietnam

China Warns Vietnam to Stop Oil Exploration in Disputed Region -- Voice of America
China urges Vietnam to stop unilateral oil, gas exploration in South China Sea -- Xinhuanet
Beijing Rebukes Hanoi on Oil -- Radio Free Asia
Vietnam ordered to halt oil search -- Scotsman
Beijing rejects Hanoi's fishing boat allegation -- China Daily
China warns Vietnam to stop oil exploration -- Today Online
South China Sea: China, Vietnam Clash Over Oil Exploration, Fishing -- International Business Times
South China Sea: Going to Get Worse Before It (Might) Gets Better -- Joshua Kurlantzick, Council On Foreign Relations

My Comment: Everyone knows that the Vietnamese are not going to listen to the Chinese .... so what is next? To save face, China will now have to do something.

Will China Go To War Against Vietnam?

Could China Teach Vietnam a New Lesson? -- Khanh Vu Duc, Asia Sentinel

Vietnam passes a new maritime law laying further claim to disputed islands.

On June 21, the Vietnamese National Assembly adopted the Vietnam Maritime Law, which was promptly criticized by China. The law sets out the legal status of Vietnam’s islands and sea and sovereignty under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which also includes the disputed Spratly and Paracel Islands. Claiming sovereignty over these islands under the law has unnecessarily irked China and opened up yet another chapter in the ongoing South China Sea dispute.

In response to any slight, real or imaginary, could China teach Vietnam a lesson?

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My Comment: Vietnam is to China what Canada is to the U.S. .... these countries are neighbors, but are small in the big picture. In short ... China will not go to war against Vietnam for the simple reason that it is not worth it.

China And Vietnam Spar over The South China Seas Again

Vietnam Spars With China Over Oil Plans -- Wall Street Journal

A spat between China and Vietnam over energy rights in the South China Sea intensified on Wednesday as Vietnam's biggest company called on China to scrap its plans to develop areas near the Vietnamese shore.

The disagreement, the latest in a string of arguments over the potentially energy-rich sea, erupted earlier in the week when China National Offshore Oil Corp. said it was offering a new batch of oil-exploration blocks inside the 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone granted to Vietnam under the United Nations' Law of the Sea.

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More News On Chinese - Vietnamese Tensions Escalating In The South China Seas

Vietnam Warns China to Halt Oil Bids in Exxon-Awarded Area -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Vietnam decries 'illegal' South China Sea oil bid -- BBC
PetroVietnam: Asked Foreign Firms to Not Bid for Offshore Blocks Offered By Cnooc -- FOX News
China-Vietnam spar over South China Sea -- UPI
Vietnam says China's South China Sea oil bid "illegal" -- Global Post
Vietnam says China offshore oil auction 'illegal' -- AFP

China opposes Vietnam patrol plane provocation -- Xinhuanet
China sends patrol ships to South China Sea -- Xinhuanet
China deploy surveillance ships to patrol South China Sea -- Times of India
China urges Vietnam to respect agreements regarding sea disputes -- Xinhuanet
China starts "combat ready" patrols in disputed seas -- Reuters

My Comment: Chinese - Philippine tensions are also heating up.

China And Vietnam Move To Reduce Tensions In The South China Seas

China and Vietnam Move to Reduce Tensions in South China Sea -- New York Times

HONG KONG — China and Vietnam announced an agreement Wednesday on a series of steps to reduce tensions in the South China Sea, where rival claims to islands and undersea minerals have been a source of frequent friction.

The two sides agreed to hold discussions twice a year to resolve their differences, and to set up a hot line between the two countries to address any disagreements more promptly.

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More News On China and Vietnam Moving To Reduce Tensions In South China Sea

A Step Back From the Brink in the South China Sea -- Time
China and Vietnam sign agreement to cool sea dispute -- Reuters
China, Vietnam sign deal to try to resolve dispute over South China Sea -- Washington Post
China and Vietnam sign deal on South China Sea dispute -- BBC
China-Vietnam agreement to guide settlement of maritime issues: spokesman -- Xinhuanet
Chinese premier calls for stronger trade, economic links with Vietnam -- Xinhuanet
China, Vietnam agree to settle sea row peacefully -- AFP

China Warns Vietnam

Chinese Naval Maneuvers Seen As Warning to Vietnam -- L.A. Times

The exercises in the South China Sea escalate tensions over a potentially resource-rich area also claimed by several neighboring countries.

The Chinese navy conducted three days of exercises — including live fire drills — in the disputed waters of the South China Sea this week, escalating tensions over a potentially resource-rich area also claimed by some neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.

The display of naval might hundreds of miles from China's southernmost border was widely seen as a warning to Vietnam, which this week conducted its own live fire drills near the Spratly Islands. Several countries claim sovereignty over the string of uninhabited volcanic rocks, which are ringed by jagged reefs and crusted with bird droppings but rendered attractive by virtue of the surrounding waters that are fertile fishing grounds and may cover significant reserves of oil and natural gas.

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My Comment: Will the Vietnamese heed the Chinese warning .... considering their history with other great powers (i.e. France, the U.S.) .... I doubt it.

China - Vietnam Tensions Simmer As Vietnam Conducts Live-Fire Exercises

Vietnam Holds Live-Fire Exercises As Territorial Dispute With China Escalates -- The Guardian

Beijing warns other regional powers not to become involved in row over South China Sea islands and surrounding waters.

China has warned other countries not to become involved in an escalating sea border dispute with Vietnam that reflects concern over Beijing's increasing international power and confidence.

Experts say the stand-off between China and Vietnam - two of the six powers laying claim to a number of islands and their surrounding waters in the South China Sea - is the worst for more than two decades. Vietnam held live-fire exercises off its coast on Monday, in what analysts said was a response without precedent.

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More News On The Tensions Between China And Vietnam

China 'will not use force' in sea disputes -- AFP
China 'will not use force' in South China Sea disputes -- BBC
China Rules Out Force To Resolve South China Sea Disputes -- RTT News
China blames Vietnam for rising tensions over disputed sea -- CNN
China Warns Against Meddling in Sea Disputes -- Wall Street Journal
Beijing Criticizes US for Meddling in S. China Sea Dispute -- Voice of America
China warns outside nations to stay out of sea dispute-paper -- Reuters
China says nations should do more for peace in S. China Sea -- Reuters
Vietnam Holds Navy Drill Amid China Spat -- Time/AP
Senator calls for US action on China sea disputes -- AFP
Analysis: SE Asia wary of China as sea claim disputes intensify -- Reuters
Rivals push to rename the South China Sea -- CNN
Q&A: South China Sea dispute -- BBC
The brinksmanship in the South China Sea -- Steve LeVine, Foreign Policy

How Cyberwarfare Could Lead To Real-World Action

Cyberwarfare could lead to real-world action (Photo: Getty)

How To Start A War From Your Bedroom -- The Telegraph

China and Vietnam are angrily pointing fingers at each other over a territorial spat which has seen ships from the two countries (survey vessels and fishing trawlers) sparring with each other in the South China Sea.

It is a phoney war – or at least a dispute with limited consequences – that is being conducted on three fronts: first, the war of words; second, the war at sea (Vietnam says a Chinese trawler snipped the cables of one of its survey ships, China says one of its trawlers was dragged backwards by another Vietnamese survey ship); and third, the war in cyberspace, in which hackers from both countries have targeted government websites.

It is the last of these that perhaps should give pause for thought.

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My Comment: A few days ago I raised the following question .... what would China do if Vietnam starts targeting critical Chinese computer networks responsible for infrastructure, military, communications, and financial institutions. The answer is obvious .... such behavior would be an act of war .... that would lead to real-world action.

Chinese - Vietnamese Tensions Rise With Military Exercises

Vietnam Mounts Artillery Drill Amid Tensions With China -- Voice of America

Vietnam’s navy has conducted live-fire artillery drills off the country’s central coast following increased tensions with China over control in the South China Sea.

The naval exercises began near an unoccupied island 40 kilometers from Vietnam’s central coast, in an escalation of tensions between Vietnam and China over disputed waters within the South China Sea.

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More News On Chinese - Vietnam Tensions Over South China Seas Boundaries

Vietnam in live-fire drill amid South China Sea row -- BBC
Vietnam holds live-fire navy drill amid China spat -- Yahoo News/AP
Vietnam Holds Navy Drill Amid China Spat -- Time/AP
Vietnam Downplays South China Sea Drill -- Wall Street Journal
Naval Drill Fuels Tensions -- Radio Free Asia
China Communist Party newspaper cautions Vietnam -- AP
Analysis: SE Asia wary of China as sea claim disputes intensify -- Reuters
Turbulent Waters in the South China Sea -- Michael Auslin, Wall Street Journal
Timeline: Tensions increase over South China claims -- Reuters

Why Vietnam Views China As A Threat

Invasion of Vietnam by the People's Republic of China.
February 17 – March 16, 1979

Vietnam Eyes China ‘Threat’ -- Jason Miks, The Diplomat

Southeast Asian nations may be struggling to get their act together over how to present a united front in response to China’s territorial claims, but this isn’t stopping some of them preparing for potential military eventualities.

Jane’s Information Group has compiled data for Vietnam that suggests the country is significantly boosting defence spending this year, in large part because of concerns about China.

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My Comment: Both Vietnam and China have a recent history of war and conflict .... a history that has not been resolved. Add this history to the present territorial disputes and claims on the South China Sea .... it is then not a surprise to see countries like Vietnam looking at China with a sense of apprehension.

Tensions Are Rising In The South China Seas

General Nguyen Chi Vinh (above) said that although the South China Sea issue is a matter of concern, international law provides a basis for a resolution. PHOTO: REUTERS

Vietnam Army Concerned Over S.China Sea Disputes -- Reuters

HANOI (Reuters) - Disputes over sovereignty in the South China Sea are increasing and Vietnam's Deputy Defence Minister Nguyen Chi Vinh said on Tuesday that was cause for concern but unlikely to lead to conflict.

Vietnam, China and other countries have longstanding competing claims of sovereignty over parts of the South China Sea, which Vietnam calls the East Sea, including the potentially oil and gas-rich Spratly and Paracel island chains.

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More News On The South China Seas

Vietnam vows peaceful resolution of maritime disputes -- AFP
South China Sea disputes won't lead to conflict: scholar -- Global Times
Peaceful resolution for dispute -- Strait Times

My Comment: If The Chinese are willing to confront U.S. naval ships in this region, they will have no problem in confronting Vietnam or any other country. The Vietnamese know that they do not have the naval assets to confront the Chinese navy, hence the international legal route for them to assert their claims.

Will the Chinese be accommodating, everyone is saying yes publicly but privately they have their doubts.