A Vietnam Coast Guard ship is on mission around the DK1/15 oil rig. (Photo: VNA) Washington (VNA) – China is engaged in a long-term and consistent campaign ofcoercing Southeast Asian countries to abandon their legitimate rights in the East Sea, according to anAmerican scholar.
Tension hasbeen escalating in the seasince Chinese survey ship Haiyang Dizhi 8 and its escort vessels returned toVietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) earlier this month.
China’sbehaviour has become more challenging as the country has deployed more ships to the East Sea than before, said Gregory B. Poling, Director ofthe Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) and a fellow with theSoutheast Asia Programme at the US’s Centre for Strategic and InternationalStudies (CSIS).
In suchcontext, he urged Southeast Asian nations to demonstrate a clear viewpoint inprotecting their rights in line with international law.
EchoingPoling’s view, Prof. Stein Tonnesson from the Peace Research Institute Oslosaid China deterring regionalcountries from conducting lawful activities in the East Sea and interfering inVietnam’s oil and gas mining in its EEZ is systematic. He advised SoutheastAsian countries to push for dialogues in order to seek rational and practicalsolutions for the issues.
As ASEAN Chairnext year and a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2020 –2021 term, Vietnam is positioned to beef up dialogue and negotiation,Prof. Kavi Chongkittavorn, SeniorFellow at the Institute of Security and International Studies, Thailand’sChulalongkorn Univeristy said. –VNA
VNA
