Vietnam slams China for landing bombers in South China Sea

Vietnam slammed the recent landing of Chinese bombers on the islands and reefs in the South China Sea (SCS), saying that such activities “increase tensions and cause regional instabilities” which are not good for maintaining a peaceful environment in the region. (Photo by Francesco Paroni Sterbini/Flickr, CC BY-ND 2.0)

Vietnam slammed the recent landing of Chinese bombers on the islands and reefs in the South China Sea (SCS), saying that such activities “increase tensions and cause regional instabilities” which are not good for maintaining a peaceful environment in the region.

“Vietnam demands that China stop these activities, cease militarization of the area, and strictly respect Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa islands,” Vietnamese foreign ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang was quoted as saying in a Reuters report.

Hoang Sa Islands are the Paracel Islands which can be found in the SCS. The Paracels are claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan but not the Philippines.

According to the report, Hang said the presence of the bombers in the area “has an adverse impact on ongoing negotiations between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea.”

Beijing, however, refuted allegations that it was “militarizing” the region.

“The South China Sea islands are Chinese territories,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said on Monday, May 21.

The move, Lu stressed, was “part of the normal training for the Chinese military.”

On the same day, the Philippines said that it is keeping an eye on the SCS, but emphasized that it will not publicize its every response over the issues on the diplomatic row.

“While appropriate language, whether expressions of condemnation or concern, over certain developments are clearly conveyed through diplomatic channels, it is not our policy to publicize every action taken by the Philippine Government whenever there are reported developments taking place in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

The agency added that it is “taking the appropriate diplomatic action” to protect the Philippines’ claims.

“Fighting for our rights under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and under our present strategy, we intend to achieve much more, including, but not limited to, an effective comprehensive Code of Conduct that will promote peace, cooperation, and stability in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea,” it added.