On May 21, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said Vietnam and the Philippines will stand together against “illegal” Chinese activities in the South China Sea.
According to the AP, Dung and President Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines stood together in Manila and “called on the world to condemn China for causing what [Dung] called an ‘extremely dangerous’ situation in the South China Sea.”
Said Dung, “[President Aquino] and I shared deep concern over the current extremely dangerous situation caused by China’s many actions that violate international law.”
Vietnam has been trying to handle its displeasure with China discreetly, “but Hanoi was incensed by the deployment of [an] oil rig on May 1.” It appears Hanoi has now adopted the more straightforward approach of the Philippines.
“Vietnam dispatched ships to confront the Chinese oil rig that have jostled with Chinese vessels defending it.”
China continues to claim that “virtually the entire South China Sea has belonged to it since ancient times.”
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