US criticises China’s provocative act in East Sea

Vietnam has confirmed that China is stationing its giant drilling rig in the area within Vietnam’s territorial waters, and its escort vessels collided with Vietnamese boats on duty, injuring six sailors and causing property damage.

At an international press briefing in Washington DC on May 8, deputy spokesperson of the US Department of State Marie Harf called on China to stop its provocative, escalating act in the East Sea – a dangerous step that can threaten peace and stability in the region.

She voiced the US’s concern about escalation in the region, saying any sovereign claims should be settled peacefully and any effort to change the status quo running counter to international law threatens regional peace and stability.

Harf said the US would continue to ask China to settle sovereign disputes peacefully in accordance with international law, and put an end to similar provocative acts.

Earlier on May 7, US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki expressed the US’s concern about China’s unilateral decision to anchor its drilling rig in the disputed waters, as well as its dangerous conduct and intimidation by Chinese vessels.

“We continue to encourage both sides to take to reduce the rhetoric and to pull back on provocative steps that are causing this level of tension in the region,” she said.

Congressman Eni Faleomavaega of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, on May 8 also strongly criticized China for violating Vietnam’s sovereignty and called upon the US to issue a clear and decisive statement of response. 

In a press release, Eni Faleomavaega noted China’s drilling rig HD-981 is anchored within Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and continental shelf, about 120 nautical miles from Ly Son island of Vietnam.

He thanked US Senator John McCain for his leadership in unequivocally stating that China’s territorial claims to these waters have no basis in international law. 

Eni Faleomavaega asserted that “China’s provocative actions are an escalation of its intent to threaten peace and maritime security in the East Sea”.

He recalled that since 2009, China has escalated its claims of the ‘nine-dash line’, cut ship cables, established Sansha City, enforced its Fishery Law, enhanced oil explorations in disputed areas, attacked Vietnamese fishing vessels, launched patrol boats, and conducted military exercises in the East Sea to flex its power and deter other claimants.