Mr. Nguyen Van Trung, Deputy Director of the Fisheries Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the number of Chinese ships in Vietnam’s water increased from 119 on Saturday to 134 on Sunday, with an additional 15 wooden fishing boats.

"The number of Chinese ships did not change on Sunday but the number of aircraft declined and they flew at higher altitudes," Trung said.

A Chinese tug boat opened its water cannons on ships of the Vietnam Coast Guard and fishing administration forces which were calling for China to remove its rig and vessels from Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone.

Trung said the Chinese wooden fishing boats are reinforced and covered with steel so that they can damage Vietnamese fishing vessels in a collision.

On Sunday, ships of the Vietnamese law enforcement forces continued to approach the illegal rig, known as HD-981, to call for China to remove it and its ships from Vietnam’s waters.

The Vietnamese ships were prevented by Chinese ships from moving closer to the rig. In this situation, Vietnamese ships tried their best to avoid collision.

The same day, Mr. Dao Viet Trung, Head of the President’s Office, was authorized by President Truong Tan Sang to pay a visit to the headquarters of the Fishery Administration. 

Bao Han