Business and Political News from China and Southeast Asia
China tells Vietnam it has ‘indisputable’ sovereignty over South China seas
Over the last few weeks Hanoi has voiced its concern about increased Chinese naval patrols in the South China Sea, and extension of a fishing ban which Vietnam argues is a violation of its territorial rights. According to the Vietnamese foreign ministry Vietnamese fishermen have been fined and arrested in large numbers by Chinese patrols lurking in Vietnamese waters. China has enforced annual fishing moratoriums in the South China Sea since 1999, but this year’s tougher measures are being met with opposition and the conflict has sparked new tension over territory which is already contested. In an official response to a complaint made by the Vietnamese government on June 4, Chinese spokesman for the ministry of foreign affairs claimed that China has ‘indisputable’ sovereignty of the South China Seas.
FM: South China Sea fishing ban ‘indisputable’, Xinhua News Agency
Vietnam asks China not to obstruct fishermens’ normal fishing, VietNamNet