Vietnam has accused Taiwan of putting up a building on a coral reef that is part of the disputed Spratly islands, to which Hanoi expects to send its first group of tourists next month.
Taiwan has put up a house on the Ban Than coral reef on the archipelago in the South China Sea, Vietnam's Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung said in a statement late on Tuesday.
"Vietnam vehemently condemns Taiwan's actions and demands an immediate end to such operations on Vietnam's Truong Sa [Spratlys] archipelago," state media quoted Dung as saying.
He accused Taiwan of "land-grabbing expansion."
In response, Gary Lin (
"The construction is a bird-watching station," Lin said.
Ministry spokesman Richard Shih (
"Taiwan has no intention of causing tension or military conflicts in the region," Shih said.
He noted the Spratly archipelago is Taiwan's territory and that the government wishes to solve the territorial disputes through dialogue.
Taiwan's representative to Vietnam has been negotiating with the Vietnamese government over the issue, Shih said.
Last November, Vietnam charged Taiwan with driving away its fishing boats from waters near the Ban Than islet in the Spratlys.
The renewed bickering over the Spratlys comes ahead of a tour to the islands aimed at re-affirming Vietnam's sovereignty.
No tourists have so far visited the area, in which Vietnam maintains a military and civilian presence.
The Thanh Nien newspaper reported on yesterday that a group of 100 tourists would visit scientific research facilities as well as the country's biggest oil and gas complex, Dai Hung, in the week-long excursion.
China has voiced opposition to the tourism proposal, saying it has "indisputable sovereignty" over the islands and surrounding waters.
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