Unusual silence

(Baonghean) -In the context of China continuously escalating its aggressive actions in the area where it illegally placed the Haiyang Shiyou 981 drilling rig in recent days, the international community has increased its opposition to China's actions, while more and more countries and experts are siding with Vietnam and saying that China will suffer the most if it does not immediately stop its actions that escalate tensions in the East Sea.

Vietnam Coast Guard approaches the western side of the Chinese drilling rig. Source: CSBVN

International opposition to China increases

The United States has increased its opposition to China when Secretary of State John Kerry spoke out for the first time yesterday on the issue. Speaking to the press, Secretary of State John Kerry affirmed that China's latest actions in the disputed East Sea are aggressive and especially worrying. Secretary of State John Kerry also emphasized that China's recent challenge to the Paracel Islands is one of the most worrying issues. And not only the US, Mr. Kerry also said, "all countries with maritime traffic activities in the East Sea and the East China Sea are very concerned about China's aggressive actions. Not only that, US Secretary of State John Kerry also had a phone call with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. During this phone call, Mr. Kerry emphasized that the US is extremely concerned about recent developments in the East Sea, and urged both sides to reduce tensions, ensure the safety of ships operating at sea and resolve disputes through peaceful means, in accordance with international law.

Britain, an influential country in Europe, yesterday also expressed support for the European Union's stance against China's actions. In a statement posted on the British Foreign Office website, Foreign Secretary Hugo Swire affirmed: "China's placement of an oil rig in Vietnamese waters has escalated tensions in the East Sea. The UK supports the European Union's statement issued on May 8 and has raised this issue with the Chinese Government at ministerial level. We call on all parties to exercise restraint and seek to limit the escalation of tensions."

Major newspapers around the world continue to have many articles about China's illegal placement of the 981 drilling rig in Vietnam's waters. The New York Times, a newspaper with many readers in the US, quoted Mr. David Zweig, Director of the Center for China's Transnational Relations at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, commenting that China's tough stance in illegally deploying the Haiyang Shiyou 981 drilling rig in Vietnam's waters could put Beijing's diplomatic goals in the region in danger. Mr. David Zweig commented that if China cannot cooperate with Vietnam after the two countries have reached a bilateral agreement (on resolving maritime issues), then how will China convince other countries to agree to bilateral agreements with China? China's assertive stance could be counterproductive if it causes Southeast Asian countries to follow the US's strategic shift in Asia.

The British Financial Times also published an article yesterday commenting on China's placement of the Haiyang Shiyou 981 oil rig, affirming that China is going against the mainstream in its relations with Vietnam. The UK has also officially expressed its views. In a statement posted on the website of the British Foreign Office, Foreign Secretary Hugo Swire affirmed: "China's placement of the oil rig in Vietnam's waters has escalated tensions in the East Sea. The UK has raised this issue with the Chinese Government at the ministerial level."

Unusual silence

While all major media outlets in the world are flooded with information and images protesting China's illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnam's continental shelf and its attacks and threats against Vietnamese government vessels, China's official press has been almost silent. Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, China News Agency... are official Chinese news agencies that are very sensitive to publishing information about emerging issues and events. But in recent days, since China illegally deployed the Haiyang Shiyou 981 oil rig in Vietnam's continental shelf, these newspapers have been almost silent.

To be more precise, a few individual newspapers, in a few days, published related information, but mostly criticized the publication of the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of this country, in which they reiterated the old stance on China's so-called "sovereignty" in the East Sea, as well as deliberately blamed other countries for causing the tense situation. According to information revealed on the Hong Kong Ta Kung Pao website on May 10 by author Liu Bo Yang: "The Chinese domestic press reported on the collision of ships with Vietnam in the East Sea were all forced to be removed by the government". This website added that on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China, when describing the actions of Chinese ships attacking and threatening Vietnamese ships, they only mentioned the two words "collision". Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi had a phone call with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh on the afternoon of May 6, but it was not until May 9 that this information was published in the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of the Communist Party of China.

It is understandable that the Chinese press has remained silent about the Haiyang Shiyou 981 drilling rig incident. They cannot justify the wrongdoings of the authorities, who brazenly put the deep-water drilling rig into operation illegally in Vietnam's continental shelf, an act that completely violates international law, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, to which China is a party. According to an article published on Hong Kong's Ta Kung Pao website on May 10, the Chinese press has remained silent because they do not want to "make a big deal out of it" when China is the wrongdoer, while Vietnam is the victim, and do not want to cause conflict with its neighbors.

In contrast to the silence on China's illegal deployment of a drilling rig in Vietnam's continental shelf, the Chinese press has focused on strongly criticizing the Philippines for arresting and prosecuting nine Chinese fishermen for illegally fishing in Philippine waters. In particular, the Chinese press has deliberately diverted public attention by trying to blame the United States for causing the recent tense situation in the East Sea. The Global Times, a newspaper affiliated with the People's Daily, is one of the few Chinese newspapers that has published many articles about the Haiyang Shiyou 981 drilling rig in recent days. However, this newspaper mainly takes a blame-shifting approach, focusing on the United States. In an article titled “US, Japan join hands on the East Sea issue, appease small countries” published in the Global Times on May 9, it is said that the US is inciting small countries to be “tough” on China to serve the strategy of “rebalancing forces in Asia”, and at the same time, it is said that the US is using diplomatic language to “trick” small countries into participating in containing China.

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VOV Reporter in Beijing