China yesterday warned its Asian neighbors to stop searching for oil near the disputed Spratly Islands and vowed to assert its sovereignty over the potentially petroleum-rich territory in the South China Sea despite rival claims.
China and the Philippines have swapped diplomatic protests over the islands, with Filipino officials accusing Chinese forces of intruding into Manila-claimed areas six times since February and of firing shots in at least one incident.
Beijing denied the allegation yesterday and said it would use violence only when attacked.
Meanwhile, Vietnam has accused China of flaring tensions in the sea by hindering the operation of an oil and gas exploration boat for the second time in two weeks.
The Spratlys, which are believed to be atop vast oil and gas reserves, have long been feared as a potential flash point of armed conflict in Asia.
The chain of barren, largely uninhabited islands, reefs and banks are claimed wholly by China, Taiwan and Vietnam and partly by the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.
Addressing Manila’s complaints for the first time, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao (劉建超) denied that his government committed any intrusion.
Liu said no Chinese vessel fired on Filipino fishermen, but suggested that Chinese forces took action to keep the exploration ship from the Reed Bank.
“That’s part of our exercise of jurisdiction. It’s not harassment,” Liu said.
Liu said some of Manila’s allegations were sparked by rumors, like a claim that Chinese fighter jets flew near Philippine patrol planes over Spratly Islands claimed by Manila.
He said China had not started to drill for oil in the contested region and warned other claimants to stop any oil exploration in the Chinese-claimed area without Beijing’s permission. China claims the entire South China Sea.
“We’re calling on other parties to stop searching for the possibility of exploiting resources in these areas where China has its claims,” he told reporters.
He said China was open to engaging other claimant countries in jointly exploring for oil and gas in the region.
Asked what would happen if countries defy China, Liu said that Beijing would assert its right over the disputed region diplomatically.
“We will never use force unless we are attacked,” he said.
In Vietnam, foreign ministry spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga said in a press briefing that a Chinese fishing boat supported by two patrol vessels yesterday morning damaged the exploration cable of the seismic survey boat operated by state-owned PetroVietnam.
She said the actions of the Chinese boats were “completely premeditated” and “seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereign rights.”
The incident came just two weeks after Chinese patrol boats cut another cable on a survey boat off its central coast. Hanoi says both incidents occurred well within the 200 nautical miles (340km) guaranteed to Vietnam as an exclusive economic zone by international law.
Nga said Vietnam’s foreign ministry officials lodged a protest with Chinese embassy officials yesterday.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2