Recent tension has risen between China and Vietnam over oil drilling rights in the South China Sea. China claims that the territory is theirs, based on a map drawn in the 40s by a Chinese geographer, who drew the disputed part of the South China Sea as China’s territory. It has already been ruled by a world wide court that the part of the sea that China has been drilling in is Vietnam’s.
China was involved in this world court case, they have pretty much elected to ignore it because they have some of their drilling ships in Vietnam’s territory. They also have been escorting their ships with coast guard vessels which decreases the chance of future conflict. It is important to note that the drilling ships are owned by the Chinese government, not by a private company.
Another location where China is staking its claim is the Scarborough Shoal. This location is controlled by China as of right now, but it is very close to the Philippines which is American territory. It is still not completely decided who should have control over it, but China’s tension started rising in 2012 when the Philippine Navy tried to remove 8 Chinese fishing vessels from the Shoal.
When you look at what the UN has ruled, China is breaking many international laws. Countries that have had past tension with China agree that they should remove their armed ships from the area and that all Chinese fishing ships should also leave the area. The Vietnamese government is finally putting their foot down on the dispute. China has repeatedly tried to sway Vietnam to let them have a military presence in their territory. On the other hand, they will not accept America’s help in removing the Chinese from their territory. Vietnam has a policy that they will not accept any aid from a forgein power. This would include China, and America because both are major world superpowers that are continuing to look for new ways in defense of their country.
Tensions could continue to rise between China and Vietnam in which military action may be put on the table.
