‘Vietnam objecting to gas pipeline plan’
Reuters
BEIJING: Vietnam is stiring up trouble by agreeing with BP and its partners to build a gas pipeline in the South China Sea, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Tuesday of an area disputed by Hanoi and Beijing.
The Spratly Islands, a string of rocky outcrops suspected of containing large oil and gas deposits, are also claimed by Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines.
The $2 billion pipeline will bring gas from two new fields to Vietnam’s south coast, though details are still being worked out.
“China has irrefutable sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and neighbouring marine areas,” spokesman Qin Gang told a news conference. “With everyone’s hard work, at present the situation in the South China Sea is stable.
“Vietnam’s series of new actions infringing on China’s sovereignty, sovereign power and administrative rights in the Spratly Islands, goes against the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries on the maritime issue,” he added.
Qin had been asked by a reporter from China’s state-run media to comment on the pipeline scheme, and about Vietnam’s plan to hold local elections on the islands.
“It is not beneficial to stability in the South China Sea area. The Chinese side is paying close attention and we have already made serious representations to the Vietnamese side,” Qin said.
Vietnam has traditionally been wary of its larger Asian neighbour and in 1979 the two countries fought a brief border war after Vietnam occupied Cambodia and overthrew the murderous Khmer Rouge regime backed by Beijing.
Beijing and Hanoi normalised relations in 1991.
In 1988, China and Vietnam fought a brief naval battle near one of the Spratly Island reefs in which more than 70 Vietnamese sailors died. But tensions have eased considerably in recent years as relations improve.
The Spratly Islands, a string of rocky outcrops suspected of containing large oil and gas deposits, are also claimed by Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines.
The $2 billion pipeline will bring gas from two new fields to Vietnam’s south coast, though details are still being worked out.
“China has irrefutable sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and neighbouring marine areas,” spokesman Qin Gang told a news conference. “With everyone’s hard work, at present the situation in the South China Sea is stable.
“Vietnam’s series of new actions infringing on China’s sovereignty, sovereign power and administrative rights in the Spratly Islands, goes against the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries on the maritime issue,” he added.
Qin had been asked by a reporter from China’s state-run media to comment on the pipeline scheme, and about Vietnam’s plan to hold local elections on the islands.
“It is not beneficial to stability in the South China Sea area. The Chinese side is paying close attention and we have already made serious representations to the Vietnamese side,” Qin said.
Vietnam has traditionally been wary of its larger Asian neighbour and in 1979 the two countries fought a brief border war after Vietnam occupied Cambodia and overthrew the murderous Khmer Rouge regime backed by Beijing.
Beijing and Hanoi normalised relations in 1991.
In 1988, China and Vietnam fought a brief naval battle near one of the Spratly Island reefs in which more than 70 Vietnamese sailors died. But tensions have eased considerably in recent years as relations improve.
5 comments:
I am very glad to see the Vietcong wanting to challenge China military!! You know this could the best thing for the Taiwanese to see how powerful the Chinese military really is??? I can assure if the China military can't defeat the Vietcong for the Sprately Island to protect China’s sovereignty then the Taiwanese can declare their sovereingnty from China!!!ahahhaha
For Cambodian Koh Tral Island, Cambodian can invite the Chinese to come in anytime to confront the Vietcong!
As long as the Koh Tral Island in the hand of the Vietcong, Cambodian must destroy all treaties signed by AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave!!!
I had toured Koh Tral Island with the Vietcong visa and it is only 15 miles from Cambodia!!!!It is such a beautiful Island and it is bigger than Singapore City state!!
The Vietcong better get the fuck out Cambodia Koh Tral Island soon!!!With the billion dollar oil revenue in the future, Cambodia must build the best naval power to confront the Vietcong and of course provide covert and overt aid to the Khmer Krom to destroy the Vietcong economy by any mean!!!
The Vietcong will never want peace with Cambodia and why should Cambodia want peace with the Vietcong!!!
And what's about you 2:00pm? ARE you in Cambodia now ,or you are in the third country?
Hey, we are not a backstaber like
you (gringoes' slaves). We will not
steal Koh Tral from ah Khmer-Yuons
or having anything to do with it.
Let ah Khmer-Yuons work it out with
Hanoi. It is their internal affair,
not ours. And that goes for the
Spratly Islands as well, we aint
gonna get ourself cought in the
line of fire. Stay out of here, you
murderers.
I would like to see this goes into war between the two. This time China will win hands down. I know before they could`nt do much in the late 70`s. But now with more money they can do lots more. Cambodia is going to be free from the Viet, then falls into the hands of China. Man we`re screwed. I`ll stick with China, they have lots of money NOW.
Indeed, their income per capita is
about 4 times of ours. However, I
would stayed out of the dispute.
Screw that. What good is the money,
when you are dead.
Post a Comment