VIETNAM has footage showing Chinese Coast Guard vessels ramming and using water cannons against Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) vessels resisting attempts to intercept a Chinese drilling rig in disputed waters in the South China Sea.
Rear Admiral Ngo Ngoc Thu, deputy commander of the VCG, showed reporters in Hanoi video footage of Chinese vessels obstructing Vietnamese ships and spraying them with water cannon, reported Jane's Defence Weekly.
The confrontation occurred after the Chinese Maritime Safety Administration posted a May 3 advisory saying they would be drilling from May 4 to August 15 in an area close to the Paracel Islands.
It warned that ships were prohibited from entering a three-mile radius around the drilling area, said Jane's.
On May 4, state-owned oil and gas exploration company PetroVietnam protested to China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) after the drilling rig was detected about 120 nautical miles from the Vietnamese coast.
PetroVietnam said the rig was detected 80 nautical miles inside Vietnam's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and continental shelf boundaries.
"This constitutes a violation of Vietnam's sovereign rights and jurisdiction under the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea," the statement added.
Vietnamese media reported that China had deployed 80 ships to accompany the oil rig, including seven military ships, 33 patrol and surveillance ships, and fishing vessels.
The vessels reportedly included the People's Liberation Army Navy Type 053H1 (Jianghu-II) frigate Jinhua (pennant 534) and a number of large Chinese Coast Guard cutters.
NAVY NEWS
14 May 2014 - 20:51
Chinese, Vietnamese vessels ram and deploy water cannon in disputed waters
VIETNAM has footage showing Chinese Coast Guard vessels ramming and using water cannons against Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) vessels resisting attempts to intercept a Chinese drilling rig in disputed waters in the South China Sea.
NAVY NEWS
14 May 2014 - 20:51
Chinese, Vietnamese vessels ram and deploy water cannon in disputed waters
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