Tag Archives: Vietnam

China’s HD-981 Oil Rig Returns, Near Disputed South China Sea Waters

Reports began emerging in the Vietnamese media on Thursday that China’s Haiyang Shiyou 981 (HD-981) oil rig—the centerpiece of last summer’s clashes between Vietnam and China—was being redeployed off the coast of China’s Hainan Island, in waters where the disputed exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of Vietnam and China overlap and west of the disputed Paracel Islands (known […]

Hanoi censures Beijing’s stance on illegal construction in East Vietnam Sea

Vietnam’s foreign ministry spokesman, Le Hai Binh, made the demand at a press briefing in Hanoi on Thursday in reply to media questions about the Southeast Asian country’s response to a statement by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Lu Kang, on the illicit building activities of China in the waters. The statement says, “The construction activities […]

The Truth About ‘Aggression’ in the South China Sea

Satellite images showing the extent of land reclamation of China and Vietnam in South China Sea have sparked debates about who the biggest aggressor is and what the status quo is (see: “Who Is the Biggest Aggressor in the South China Sea?,” “Who Is the Biggest Aggressor in the South China Sea? (A Rejoinder),” and […]

Viet Nam attends meeting on UN sea law convention

NEW YORK (VNS) — Viet Nam has underlined the significant role of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in creating legal frameworks for promoting the exploitation of seas and oceans in a peaceful, fair, stable and effective manner for peace and prosperity. Addressing the 25th meeting of State Parties to […]

Vietnam Muddles China’s South China Sea Challenge

China’s recently revealed massive land reclamation activities in the South China Sea represent a particular threat to rival claimant Vietnam’s strategic position and interests. Factional competition ahead of next year’s Communist Party National Congress, where five-year plans, policies, and leadership positions are determined, has complicated Hanoi’s ability to devise a coherent and credible response to […]

Anxious About China, Asian Nations Buy More U.S. Military Hardware

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, right, and Vietnam’s Defense Minister Phung Quang Thanh review the guard of honour during a welcoming ceremony at the Defense Ministry in Hanoi, Vietnam, on June 1. The U.S., Russia, France, the U.K. and other countries are all jockeying to sell military equipment to Southeast Asian countries. Hoang Dinh Nam/Reuters/Landov […]

China is a threat: US scholar

The three scholars mentioned in the article are Dr. Mr. Denny Roy, a senior expert on governance and security from the East-West Center (USA), Prof. Sherry P. Broder, a lecturer at the William S. Richardson Law School, University of Hawaii (USA) and Dr. Li Guoqiang, a researcher in the field of philosophy and social sciences […]

China’s “historical evidence” worthless to international law

China may show ‘evidence’ that Chinese sailors used to be present in the East Sea (South China Sea in international name), but according to international law, that does not prove its ownership. In the perspective of China, the country with many plans to turn the East Sea into its own pond, Mr. Li Guoqiang, a […]

Vietnam says reports of China artillery on reclaimed land ‘bad sign’

SINGAPORE – Vietnam’s deputy defence minister said on Saturday that reports China had placed mobile artillery weapons on a reclaimed island in the disputed South China Sea were, if true, a very worrying development. “If it has actually happened it is a very bad sign for what is already a very complicated situation in the […]

VN tells China to halt island intrusion

HA NOI (VNS) — Viet Nam demanded that China stop construction currently under way in the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Le Hai Binh said. China has begun building two lighthouses on the Truong Sa islands. During a regular press conference yesterday, Binh stressed that Viet Nam had sufficient […]