bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Catherine Wong

China’s latest activities in the South China Sea have triggered a strong protest from rival claimant Vietnam, which said the move “seriously violated” its sovereignty.
The complaint came after China announced on Sunday that it had set up two new administrative districts on the Paracel and Spratly Islands.
The two districts – which China referred to as Xisha and Nansha – will be under the control of Sansha, a city the Chinese government created in 2012 to assert its claims over the South China Sea.
Vietnam’s foreign ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang issued a statement of protest on Sunday, and said the move would further complicate the situation in the South China Sea.


“These acts are not conducive to the development of the friendly relations between countries and further complicate the situation in the East Sea [Vietnam’s name for the South China Sea], the region and the world,” she said.
“Vietnam demands that China respect Vietnam’s sovereignty and annul its wrongful decisions and not repeat similar activities in the future.”
Under the new plan, the new district of Xisha will be in charge of Paracel Islands, which are also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan. The Nansha district will manage the Spratly Islands, where there are also multiple competing claims.
Beijing marks out claims in South China Sea by naming geographical features
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday that the establishment of the new districts was in line with China’s normal administrative rules.
“China has been resolutely opposing Vietnam’s words and deeds that undermine China’s sovereignty and rights and interests in the South China Sea, and will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard China’s sovereignty and rights and interests.” he said in a press conference
Vietnam is the only claimant which has publicly protested about the move so far. But Zhang Mingliang, an specialist in Southeast Asian politics with Jinan University, said it was likely to have alarmed other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).


“Setting up such districts will not have much use or actual benefit, and it will cause opposition among the Asean states, many of which have long been suspicious of China’s intentions over the South China Sea,” said Zhang.
“The coronavirus outbreak has already caused some grievances among them towards China, even though they have not been as vocal as the Western countries,” he said.
Richard Heydarian, an academic and former Philippine government adviser, described the move as China taking advantage of a “strategic vacuum” created by the Covid-19 crisis.
South China Sea: Chinese ship Haiyang Dizhi 8 seen near Malaysian waters, security sources say
“On the one hand it’s engaging in face mask diplomacy [providing medical supplies to other countries] … but on the other hand it’s on the offensive,” he said.
“All of them should be seen as part of one package in which China seizes the strategic opportunity of not only its neighbouring countries scrambling to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, but also the US Navy’s suspension of overseas appointments.”
China has recently become involved in a series of stand-off with other claimants in the contested waters.
A Chinese government survey ship reportedly tagged an exploration vessel operated by Malaysia's state oil company Petronas in the area, and remained off the Malaysian coastline as of late Sunday.
Earlier this month, Vietnam lodged an official protest with China after a Vietnamese fishing boat sunk after a collision in the Paracel Islands.



Xi’s new year message to military reveals PLA Cyberspace Force post in South China Sea

The Philippines rebukes China over travel ban on Kalayaan officials

Philippines to expand civilian population in disputed Spratly Islands amid diplomatic row

The US Army’s new presence in the Philippines and the push to contain China

South China Sea

Vietnam accuses Beijing of ‘seriously violating’ sovereignty in South China Sea

An aerial view of Sanha, a city created to assert China’s claims over the disputed waters. Photo: AFP

Beijing marks out claims in South China Sea by naming geographical features

An aerial view of Qilianyu islands in the Paracel chain, which China considers to be its territory. Photo: AFP

(FILES) This file photo taken on April 20, 2017, shows an aerial view of reefs in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. - General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on May 29, 2019, that Chinese President Xi Jingping reneged on promises not to militarize the South China Sea and called for "collective action" to hold Beijing responsible. "The fall of 2016, President Xi Jinping promised President Obama that they would not militarize the islands. So what we see today are 10,000-foot (3048-meter) runways, ammunition storage facilities, routine deployment of missile defense capabilities, aviation capabilities, and so forth," he said in a talk on US security and defense at the Brooking institution. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP)

Beijing moves to strengthen grip over disputed South China Sea

China is seeking to extend its control over the Spratly Islands where there are multiple competing claims. Photo: AFP

This March 2017 image provided by Maxar Technologies shows a satellite image of Fiery Cross Reef in Spratly island chain in the South China Sea. (Satellite image ©2019 Maxar Technologies via AP)

South China Sea: Chinese ship Haiyang Dizhi 8 seen near Malaysian waters, security sources say

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said the Haiyang Dizhi 8 was conducting normal activities. Photo: China Geological Survey

Philippines expresses ‘deep concern’ after China-Vietnam incident in South China Sea

Woody Island (Yongxing Island), one of the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea. Photo: SCMP / Roy Issa

FILE - In this Sept. 14, 2014, file photo, Chinese tourists take souvenir photos with the Chinese national flag as they visit Quanfu Island, one of Paracel Islands of Sansha prefecture of southern China's Hainan province in the South China Sea. Vietnam’s foreign ministry on Friday, April 3, 2020, said a fishing boat with eight Vietnamese fishermen on board was “carrying out normal fishing activities” the previous day in waters near the Paracel islands that Vietnam claims but which are controlled by China. It was then “hindered, rammed and sunk” by a Chinese coast guard vessel, the ministry said. (AP Photo/Peng Peng, File)

Members of the Chinese Coast Guard stand in formation on board their vessel after it anchored at Manila port on January 14, 2020. - Members of Chinese Coast Guard are in the Philippines to conduct inaugural joint maritime exercises between the two countries. (Photo by STR / AFP)

FILE PHOTO: A ship (top) of the Chinese Coast Guard is seen near a ship of the Vietnam Marine Guard in the South China Sea, about 210 km (130 miles) off shore of Vietnam May 14, 2014. REUTERS/Nguyen Minh/File Photo/File Photo

US accuses Beijing of using coronavirus as cover for South China Sea activity

Subi Reef in the South China Sea, where Beijing has recently added a research facility to its military base. Photo: AFP

News

China

Diplomacy


Move to create administrative units for disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands angers Hanoi
China has been engaged in a series of stand-offs with rival claimants recently



Move to create administrative units for disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands angers Hanoi.


Vietnam accuses Beijing of ‘seriously violating’ sovereignty in South China Sea

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Move to create administrative units for disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands angers Hanoi China has been engaged in a series of stand-offs with rival claimants recently

Move to create administrative units for disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands angers Hanoi

China has been engaged in a series of stand-offs with rival claimants recently