简体中文
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman on Wednesday accused Vietnam of being a provocateur for its harassment of a Chinese company's normal drilling activities in the waters off China's Xisha Islands.
Hua Chunying told a daily press briefing that disruptions to drilling activities of China Oilfield Services Limited (COSL) caused by Vietnamese vessels in the waters were continuing.
On Tuesday, Vietnamese boats rammed Chinese vessels as many as 169 times, Hua said, noting it was the highest single-day record.
Hua added that Chinese official vessels had no choice but to adopt necessary self-defense measures to safeguard normal operations of the oil company as well as security of Chinese citizens and facilities.
The Chinese side also found that there were some journalists on board the Vietnamese vessels, the spokeswoman said, accusing the Vietnamese side of deliberately escalating the issue.
It is difficult to deny that Vietnam is the provocateur, Hua said, noting that operations undertaken by COSL are far more than 100 nautical miles from Vietnam's coastline.
She urged the Vietnamese side to return to a rational track and stop all forms of harassment and provocations.
It is very obvious who is right and who is wrong, the spokeswoman said, reiterating that the Xisha Islands are entirely Chinese territory and Chinese companies have been operating in the waters for 10 years.
Since May 2, Vietnam has disrupted operations of the Chinese company, which violated China's sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction, said Hua.
Noting the two countries maintain necessary contact on current issues, Hua said that China has always kept calm with restraint to safeguard bilateral relations and regional peace and stability.
However, the Vietnamese side deliberately brought journalists on boardto try to present a false picture to deceive public opinion, Hua said, stressing that Vietnam's behavior was a complete "show."
"Common sense tells us that attackers are not necessarily huge in size and what is spoken out with the loudest voice may not always hold water," she said.
