Chinese ships ‘swarm’ in Vietnamese waters, say expert group

After finishing off the Philippines, Chinese maritime militia and fishing boats apparently invaded Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, according to a Vietnamese research organization citing ship tracking data.

A 2,600-tonne Chinese inspection vessel, the Haiyang Dizhi Si Hao, was also delayed inside Hanoi’s EEZ, indicating “a possible operation” there, the South China Sea Chronicle Initiative also reported.

According to SCSCI, the number of Chinese vessels in the economic zone increased sharply in the first two weeks of March, nearly tripling the number seen at the end of February. An EEZ gives a state exclusive access to natural resources in the waters and on the seabed.

The data was collected using automatic identification system (AIS) signals transmitted by ships.

“Chinese ships have also been operating deep in Vietnam’s EEZ, as far as just 60 nautical miles (111 km) off the coast of Quang Ngai,” SCSCI manager Van Pham told Radio Free Asia, referring to a province in central Vietnam.

Fishing and militia boats are often accompanied by the Chinese Coast Guard.

Chinese survey ship

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Chinese research and survey ship, also known as the Haiyang Dizhi 4, spent hours in Vietnam-controlled waters before entering an area of ​​overlapping claims in the South China Sea.

Parts of the strategic waterway are claimed by Vietnam, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and China, but the area claimed by Beijing is by far the largest.

China and neighboring countries have been at odds over Beijing’s offshore oil and gas exploration.

According to the Marine Traffic ship tracker, the Haiyang Dizhi 4 was in the Vietnamese EEZ for more than 17 hours on March 15.

“It appears that the ship was conducting an operation here,” the SCSCI alleged.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry was not immediately available for comment.

Hanoi has repeatedly complained about the activities of Chinese inspection vessels in its EEZ, calling them “a violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty.”

In 2019, a protest broke out outside the Chinese embassy in Hanoi over the Haiyang Dizhi 8, a reconnaissance ship that had operated for months in Vietnam-controlled waters.

The following year, the same ship was involved in a month-long standoff with a Malaysian oil exploration vessel.

The biggest confrontation to date between Vietnam and China over oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea was in 2014, when China moved a drilling rig, the Hai Yang Shi You 981, into Vietnamese waters.

The incident involved dozens of law enforcement ships from both sides and sparked anti-China protests in Vietnam.

In the end, China withdrew the oil rig after two and a half months.

gray area operations

China has been conducting so-called “grey area” operations, with non-traditional forces like the maritime militia being used to achieve economic and security objectives.

Another claimant in the South China Sea, the Philippines, recently accused Chinese maritime militia ships of swarming within its EEZ.

According to Ray Powell, leader of the Myoushu (South China Sea) Project at Stanford University in California, China’s maritime militia ships off the Philippine-controlled island of Thitu were dispersing after swarming there in early of this month.

On March 4, the Philippine Coast Guard said more than 40 suspected Chinese maritime militia ships they were seen within 4.5 to 8 nautical miles off the coast of the island, which is known in the Philippines as Pag-asa.

“By periodically dispersing its forces, China’s militia fleet appears to be intent on making it difficult for Philippine law enforcement agencies to track and document its swarm tactics,” Powell told RFA.

China’s maritime militia is mainly organized by the country’s big fishing companies.

Investigation of Andrew Erickson and Conor Kennedy in 2016 found that the only estimate of the size of the Chinese maritime militia was from a source published in 1978, which put the number of personnel at 750,000 in roughly 140,000 vessels. This number has probably grown substantially since then.

In its 2010 Defense White Paper, China stated that it had eight million militiamen across the country, including the maritime militia.

Edited by Imran Vittachi.