A Chinese
warship confronted an Indian naval vessel in waters off Vietnam and demanded
its identity, the Financial Times said on Thursday, amid regional concern over
Beijing's maritime assertiveness.
The London-based newspaper reported that five people familiar
with the incident said it occurred in international waters shortly after
India's amphibious assault ship INS Airavat completed a scheduled port call in
Vietnam.
Delhi confirmed contact was made with its ship, but rejected
the suggestion of a "confrontation".
On July 22 after sailing 45 nautical miles off Nha Trang, the
INS Airavat was called on an open radio channel by someone identifying himself
as the "Chinese Navy", the Indian government said in a statement.
"You are entering Chinese waters," the radio caller
said, according to the statement. It added that no ship or aircraft was visible
from the Indian vessel, which proceeded as scheduled.
"India supports freedom of navigation in international
waters, including in the South China Sea, and the right of passage in
accordance with accepted principles of international law. These principles
should be respected by all," Delhi said.
A series of Chinese actions in the South China Sea have
caused nervousness among regional neighbours -- particularly Vietnam and the
Philippines.
China says it has sovereignty over essentially all of the
South China Sea, a key global trading route, where its professed ownership of
the potentially oil-rich Spratly archipelago overlaps with claims by Vietnam,
the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia.
Vietnam and China have a separate long-standing dispute over
the more northerly Paracels archipelago.
The INS Airavat visited Nha Trang in south-central Vietnam
and the northern port of Haiphong in the second half of July.
Vietnam's foreign ministry said it had no information about
the incident, while China's foreign ministry spokesman said he had queried the
defence ministry but had not yet received a response.
A source familiar with the incident told AFP it was "a
typical Chinese approach", adding that Beijing's enforcement vessels try
to assert "that this is their territory and what are you doing in their
territory?".
In recent months, the Philippines and Vietnam have objected
to what they said was Chinese harassment of oil exploration vessels and
fishermen in the South China Sea.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in July condemned acts
of "intimidation" in the waters, where it says it has a national
interest in free navigation.
A Pentagon report on Wednesday last week said China is
increasingly focused on naval power, as it places a growing priority on
securing strategic shipping lanes and mineral-rich areas in the South China
Sea.
Chinese leaders have insisted their military modernisation
programme is aimed solely at "self-defence".
Casino Classic
Source : AFP
No comments:
Post a Comment