China Scolds Vietnam for 'Hyping up' South China Sea Oil Rig Row

Vietnam's official Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper said Chinese ships did little to try to impede Vietnamese boats in the area on Tuesday. It quoted a senior Vietnamese naval official as saying the Chinese ships had been less aggressive, suggesting an effort to dial down tension ahead of Yang's visit.

While communist parties rule both countries and trade has taken off in recent years, Vietnam has long been suspicious of its giant neighbour, especially over China's claims to almost the entire South China Sea. Ordinary Vietnamese are also quickly angered by any perceived bullying from China.

The Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have claims to parts of the potentially energy-rich waters, and China has looked on with suspicion at what it sees as U.S. moves to "provoke" tension by supporting its regional allies, notably Vietnam and the Philippines.

"The United States keeps pushing its pivot to the Asia Pacific strategy, provoking relevant countries to rely on U.S. strength and use violence to scheme at sea, which worsens the problem and increases antagonism," state media on Wednesday quoted a Chinese military think-tank as saying in a report.

"China's maritime development and security challenge is suddenly very severe," the Defence Policy Research Center of the Academy of Military Sciences of the People's Liberation Army said in its report.

The deployment of the Haiyang Shiyou 981 rig triggered anti-Chinese riots in Vietnam in which four people were killed during a rampage of destruction and looting of factories believed to be owned by Chinese companies. Many of the factories were Taiwan-owned.


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